# Alitretinoin

Source: https://onco.cc/drugs/alitretinoin/  
OnCo record `alitretinoin` (Treatment). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Alitretinoin gel is a vitamin A derivative applied directly to Kaposi sarcoma skin lesions in people with AIDS, approved in the United States in 1999 as the first topical treatment for the disease.

## Summary

Alitretinoin (9-cis-retinoic acid) activates every known retinoid receptor. As Panretin gel it was approved by the FDA in February 1999 for cutaneous lesions of AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma in patients who do not need systemic therapy, on the basis of two randomised trials in which about a third of lesions responded. Skin irritation at the application site is the main side effect. The oral form is approved in Europe for severe chronic hand eczema, not for cancer.

## Fields

- Kind: Treatment
- Status: established
- Last checked: 2026-09-08
- Also known as: 9-cis-retinoic acid
- Tags: gap-fill; chembl-universe
- Brand: Panretin
- Modality: Topical retinoid gel
- Mechanism: A natural retinoid that binds both retinoic acid receptors and retinoid X receptors, switching on genes that slow proliferation and induce differentiation in Kaposi sarcoma cells.
- Approvals: US 1999: Cutaneous lesions of AIDS-related Kaposi sarcoma (topical gel)

## Sources

- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alitretinoin
- Drugs@FDA NDA020886: https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cder/daf/index.cfm?event=overview.process&ApplNo=020886
- Label (DailyMed): https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/search.cfm?labeltype=all&query=alitretinoin
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alitretinoin

## Connected records

- cancers: [Kaposi sarcoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/kaposi-sarcoma/)
- technologies: [Cytotoxic chemotherapy](https://onco.cc/technologies/cytotoxic-chemotherapy/)

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JSON: https://onco.cc/api/v1/entities/alitretinoin.json