Rasburicase, sold under the brand name Elitek in the US and Fasturtec in the EU, is a medication that helps to clear uric acid from the blood.

The drug product is a sterile, white to off-white, lyophilized powder intended for intravenous administration following reconstitution with a diluent.

[5] Rasburicase is approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (and European counterparts) for the prevention and treatment of tumor lysis syndrome (TLS)[6] in people receiving chemotherapy for hematologic cancers such as leukemias and lymphomas.

While Heinz bodies are not visible on a Giemsa-stained smear, they can be detected with supravital staining, appearing as 1- to 3-μm inclusions in RBCs (inset).

[10][11] Rasburicase administration can cause anaphylaxis (incidence unknown); methemoglobinemia may occur in susceptible individuals such as those with G6PDH deficiency due to the production of hydrogen peroxide in the urate oxidase reaction.

A cross-study comparison revealed that after administration of rasburicase at 0.15 or 0.20 mg/kg, the geometric mean values of body-weight normalized clearance were approximately 40% lower in Japanese (n=20) than that in Caucasians (n=22).