Tyrosine kinase inhibitors in canine solid tumours: a systematic review of indications, response and safety

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) are targeted therapeutic agents offering precise cancer treatment by disrupting pathways critical for abnormal cell proliferation and survival. In veterinary oncology, TKI initially emerged as a targeted therapeutic approach for managing mast cell tumors, and have been applied to treat other solid tumors in dogs. However, the use of TKI for solid tumors remains challenging. Therefore, this study aimed to perform a systematic review of the use of TKI in canine solid tumors. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across PubMed for studies published from 1986 to July 2025 according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses’ guidelines. The terms used were “Tyrosine kinase inhibitors” and “dogs” for the systematic review. Studies were selected based on tyrosine kinase expression in neoplastic processes and the use of TKIs in both in vitro and in vivo settings in dogs. A thorough investigation of PubMed and relevant reference lists revealed 200 studies that met this review’s inclusion criteria. The studies were further categorized into therapeutic targeting of canine malignancies and the clinical applicability of commonly used TKIs in dogs. The search yielded 36 publications investigating the direct clinical applications of TKIs in solid tumors. Mast cell tumors (MCTs), osteosarcomas, hepatocellular carcinomas, and transitional cell carcinomas were the most frequently reported types of tumors treated with TKIs. The current literature indicates that toceranib, masitinib, imatinib, lapatinib, sorafenib, vemurafenib, trametinib, dasatinib, and sunitinib are tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) that have been previously investigated. It is evident from this review that more research is needed to uncover new indications in canine oncology and bridge the knowledge gaps between common human and canine cancers, such as melanomas, carcinomas, and hemangiosarcomas, in the scenario of TKIs.