Development of an Effective Palladium Removal Process for VEGF Oncology Candidate AG13736 and a Simple, Efficient Screening Technique for Scavenger Reagent Identification

AG13736 (Axitinib), an inhibitor of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) under investigation as an oncology drug, is currently manufactured via a three-step process that utilizes two palladium-mediated cross-couplings. Historically, removal of residual heavy metals from the active pharmaceutical ingredient has been a persistent issue. The development of a much improved process for palladium removal and a useful screening technique developed to rapidly identify the most efficient reagents for this purpose are outlined. The performance of the new endgame process in pilot-plant scale-up is also discussed.