Cancer chemotherapy and pharmacology
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Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. · Dec 2008
Antitumor activity of noscapine in human non-small cell lung cancer xenograft model.
An antitussive plant alkaloid, Noscapine HCl (Nos) displays anticancer activity and has a safe pharmacological profile in humans. The current study was aimed to investigate the in vitro and in vivo anti tumor activity of Nos to determine possible mechanisms of anti tumor activity for treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). ⋯ Our studies suggest that potent antitumor activity of Nos against NSCLC cells. Oral administration of Nos showed significant reduction in tumor volume in human non-small cell lung tumor xenograft in nude mice in a dose dependant manner. Thus, Nos is a promising novel chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of human lung cancer.
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Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. · Nov 2008
Multicenter StudyUse of the folinic acid/5-fluorouracil/irinotecan (FOLFIRI 1) regimen in elderly patients as a first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer: a Phase II study.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a combination of folinic acid, 5-fluorouracil (5FU) and irinotecan (FOLFIRI 1) administered every 2 weeks in a population of elderly subjects with advanced colorectal cancer. ⋯ The FOLFIRI 1 regimen is a valid therapeutic option for elderly patients in good clinical condition.
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Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. · Nov 2008
Clinical TrialSalvage treatment with topotecan in patients with irinotecan-refractory small cell lung cancer.
Although the efficacy of topotecan as a second-line chemotherapy for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) has been consistently demonstrated in phase II/III clinical trials, the choice of irinotecan as the first-line therapy prevented the use of evidence-based option. This pilot study was conducted to determine the activity and safety of topotecan in SCLC patients refractory to first-line therapy with irinotecan and platinum. ⋯ Topotecan monotherapy for patients with irinotecan-refractory SCLC does not appear highly active but the observation of some responses merits further study in patients with chemosensitive disease.
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Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. · Nov 2008
Comparative StudyPharmacokinetic profile of the microtubule stabilizer patupilone in tumor-bearing rodents and comparison of anti-cancer activity with other MTS in vitro and in vivo.
Patupilone is a microtubule stabilizer (MTS) currently in clinical development. Here, we evaluate the anti-cancer activity in vitro and in vivo in comparison to paclitaxel and describe the pharmacokinetics (PK) of patupilone in tumor-bearing nude mice and rats. ⋯ The high potency of patupilone, which is not affected by P-gp expression either in vitro or in vivo, and favorable PK, independent of tumor vascularity, suggest that it should show significant activity in colorectal cancer and in other indications where high P-gp expression may compromise taxane activity.
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Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. · Nov 2008
Th1/Th2 balance: an important indicator of efficacy for intra-arterial chemotherapy.
It has been reported that Th2 cytokines down-regulate antitumor immunity, while activation of type 1 T cells promotes antitumor immunity. However, the immunological features of liver cirrhosis (LC) patients with advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (aHCC) treated by intra-arterial chemotherapy are still unclear. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of intra-arterial combination chemotherapy on the Th1/Th2 balance in LC patients with aHCC. ⋯ These results indicate that the Th1/Th2 balance might be a useful indicator of the effect of intra-arterial combination chemotherapy in LC patients with aHCC. Inhibition of an increase of Th2 cells might be important for the efficacy of intra-arterial chemotherapy in such patients.