Aurora kinases are essential mediators in cell mitosis. Amplification of these kinases can lead to the development of malignancy and may be associated with inferior survival. Alisertib is an oral aurora kinase inhibitor which has been shown to induce cell-cycle arrest and apoptosis in preclinical studies. It is currently under investigation for a wide variety of malignancies including hematologic (specifically Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma) and solid tumors. Areas covered: A PubMed search was performed to identify clinical studies reporting outcomes with alisertib. Promising results are notable in patients with peripheral T cell lymphoma in particular, forming the basis for the first phase 3 randomized trial of alisertib. Although it did show encouraging response rates, it failed to demonstrate superiority over the comparator arm at an interim analysis, halting further enrollment. Expert opinion: Despite disappointing early results, alisertib remains under investigation in a number of cancer types both as monotherapy and in combination with traditional cytotoxic chemotherapy, with encouraging results. Most common toxicities in early trials include myelosuppression alopecia, mucositis and fatigue. The relatively manageable toxicity profile of alisertib along with ease of dosing may allow it to be combined with other oral agents or traditional chemotherapy across a wide variety of malignancy types.
Keywords: Alisertib; Aurora A Kinase; MLN8237; hematologic malignancies; pharmacokinetics.