Expert review of anticancer therapy
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Expert Rev Anticancer Ther · Feb 2002
ReviewCAMPATH (alemtuzumab) for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia and beyond.
CAMPATH (CAMPATH-1H, alemtuzumab, MabCAMPATH), is a lymphocyte-depleting humanized monoclonal antibody that was recently approved in the USA and Europe for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). It targets CD52--a small glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored glycoprotein that is highly expressed on normal T- and B-lymphocytes and on a large proportion of lymphoid cell malignancies--but not on hematopoietic progenitor cells. ⋯ CAMPATH is also active against T-cell prolymphocytic leukemia and has been extensively used to prevent graft-versus-host disease associated with bone marrow transplantation. CAMPATH is owned by ILEX Pharmaceuticals LP and distributed by Schering AG and its US affiliate Berlex Laboratories.
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Raloxifene is a member of a family of drugs known as selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs). Raloxifene is currently approved by the FDA for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. ⋯ Ongoing clinical trials are in place to address the role of raloxifene and SERMs in each of these areas. We review the pharmacology, clinical utility, safety and tolerability of raloxifene and speculate on what the future holds for SERMs and their use in breast cancer.