Chemotherapy Agents
Chemotherapy is the general term for any treatment involving the use of chemical agents to stop cancer cells from growing. Chemotherapy can eliminate cancer cells at sites great distances from the original cancer. As a result, chemotherapy is considered a systemic treatment.
A chemotherapy regimen (a treatment plan and schedule) usually includes drugs to fight cancer plus drugs to help support completion of the cancer treatment at the full dose on schedule.
Chemotherapy is designed to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy can be administered through a vein, injected into a body cavity, or delivered orally in the form of a pill, depending on which drug is used.
Chemotherapy works by destroying cancer cells; unfortunately, it cannot tell the difference between a cancer cell and some healthy cells. So chemotherapy eliminates not only the fast-growing cancer cells but also other fast-growing cells in your body, including, hair and blood cells.
Some cancer cells grow slowly while others grow rapidly. As a result, different types of chemotherapy drugs target the growth patterns of specific types of cancer cells. Each drug has a different way of working and is effective at a specific time in the life cycle of the cell it targets. Your doctor will determine the chemotherapy drug that is right for you.
(courtesy of chemotherapy.com)
Additional Information
In vitro and in vivo therapeutic efficacy of the PPAR-gamma agonist troglitazone in combination with cisplatin against malignant pleural mesothelioma cell growth (5/27/2010)
This study examined the therapeutic efficacy of the PPAR-gamma agonist troglitazone (TGZ) in combination with cisplatin against a human mesothelioma cell line, both in vitro and orthotopically inoculated into severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Theresults suggest that TGZ in combination with cisplatin may become a novel therapy for mesothelioma. More...
The investigation of effects of quercetin and its combination with Cisplatin on malignant mesothelioma cells in Vitro (5/17/2010)
This study investigated the antiproliferative effect of Quercetin (QU) and its combination with Cisplatin (CIS) on mesothelioma. Our experiments showed that QU significantly reduced the proliferation of cell lines and altered the cell cycle distribution. Additionally, the combination of QU + CIS was found more effective when compared with individual treatment of agents. More...
Phenotype-dependent Apoptosis Signalling in Mesothelioma Cells After Selenite Exposure (7/30/2009)
Selenite is a promising anticancer agent which has been shown to induce apoptosis in malignant mesothelioma cells in a phenotype-dependent manner, where cells of the chemoresistant sarcomatoid phenotype are more sensitive. More...
Mesothelioma Cells Escape Heat Stress by Upregulating Hsp40/Hsp70 Expression via Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases (7/30/2009)
Therapy with hyperthermal chemotherapy in pleural diffuse malignant mesothelioma had limited benefits for patients. Here we investigated the effect of heat stress on heat shock proteins (HSP), which rescue tumour cells from apoptosis. More...
Morphotek(R), Inc. Announces Initiation of MORAb-009 Phase II Study in First- Line Treatment of Mesothelioma (3/12/2009)
Morphotek(R), Inc. has commenced a multi-centered Phase II study of its MORAb-009 monoclonal antibody in mesothelioma. The study will evaluate MORAb-009, plus the chemotherapy drugs pemetrexed and cisplatinum, as a first-line treatment for patients with mesothelioma. More...
A case of sarcomatoid malignant peritoneal mesothelioma responding to combination chemotherapy of cyclophosphamide, vincristine, adriamycin and dacarbazine(CYVADIC). (3/2009)
Sarcomatoid mesothelioma is known to have a poor prognosis. However, this case study showed remarkable reduction of recurrent tumors after this aggressive chemotherapy regimen. More...
Three-dimensional Evaluation of Chemotherapy Response in Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma. (3/4/2009)
Measurement of tumor response to chemotherapy in mesothelioma is problematic because of non-spherical tumor growth patterns and difficulty in choosing target lesion. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of tumor volume measurement for evaluating chemotherapy response by using a three-dimensional approach. More...
Phase I and pharmacokinetic study of pemetrexed plus cisplatin in chemonaive patients with locally advanced or metastatic malignant pleural mesothelioma or non-small cell lung cancer. (1/15/2009) More...
Phase II study of belinostat (PXD101), a histone deacetylase inhibitor, for second line therapy of advanced malignant pleural mesothelioma. (1/14/2009) More...
Gemcitabine combined with oxaliplatin in pretreated patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma: an observational study. Pemetrexed-pretreated patients with progressive malignant pleural mesothelioma may benefit from a consecutive chemotherapy with oxaliplatin and gemcitabine without significant toxicity.(12/18/2008) More...
In vitro-chemosensitivity test using the collagen gel droplet embedded culture drug test (CD-DST) for malignant pleural mesothelioma may possibly be applied to selecting the chemotherapy regimen for mesothelioma. (12/14/2008) More...
Chemotherapy May Not Affect Survival or Quality of Life for Patients with Advanced Mesothelioma. Researchers from the UK and Australia involved in a multicenter randomized trial have concluded that chemotherapy for advanced pleural mesothelioma may not improve survival or quality of life. (2008) More...
ALIMTA®, pemetrexed is an antifolate antineoplastic agent that works by blocking specific enzymes thought to play a role in the rapid growth of lung tumors. Alimta can be given with cisplatin, another anti-cancer medicine.
ALIMTA in combination with cisplatin, camptosar or other agents is indicated for the treatment of patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma whose disease is unresectable or who are otherwise not candidates for curative surgery. More...
ONCONASE is an agent that is meant to target cancerous cells while sparing healthy cells from side effects. ONCONASE is taken into cancerous cells, where it kills the cell through various processes. More...