Evaluation of the cisplatin nephrotoxicity using the urinary neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) in patients with head and neck cancer.

Introduction: Acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients receiving cisplatin is common, therefore the evaluation of renal function in patients on use of nephrotoxic drugs is fundamental.

Objective: To evaluate the incidence of AKI and the role of lipocalin associated to neutrophil gelatinase (NGAL) in the monitoring of renal function in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) who received cisplatin.

Methods: We prospectively studied 50 patients with HNC treated with three sessions of cisplatin.

Biomarkers of acute kidney injury.

Creatinine remains the standard for laboratory diagnosis of AKI. Efforts to prevent nephrotoxicity have been harmed by the delay in the diagnosis of AKI criteria by using only the creatinine as a marker, therefore there is great interest in identifying early reliable biomarkers. Moreover, early treatment of ARF can be correlated with a better prognosis and identification of biomarkers for early diagnosis would improve the efficacy of a therapeutic strategy.