Anticancer drugs side effects

TNF was originally identified because of its cytotoxic activity against some tumor cell lines and its ability to induce hemorrhagic necrosis of solid tumors in various animal models. However, the clinical use of TNF as an anticancer drug has been so far limited by its severe cardiovascular side effects. Therefore, TNF treatment is limited to regional and local administration of high doses of TNF, often in combination with chemotherapy, as accomplished in isolated limb and isolated hepatic perfusion (ILP and IHP, respectively) [5]. In the case of ILP, typically metastases are treated, patients benefit from this procedure by salvage of limbs from a loss by amputation. 

Novel nitroxide malonate methanofullerenes (Fig. 1.3), thanks to the presence of nitroxide radicals and fullerene moiety, are able to protect cells from toxic side effects of cyclophosphamide (Gubskaya et al., 2007). Experiments were carried out on mice, in which leukemia P-388 was transplanted. Cyclophosphamide or fullerene individually injected did not increase the average life span of the animals, while the combination of the anticancer drug and nitroxide fullerene derivative resulted in the survival of 70% animals, classifying these compounds as promising modifiers of biological reaction for tumor therapy. 

One of the main problems which arises when discovering a new anticancer agent is to know whether the curative properties of such a drug are not accompanied by too many prejudicial side-effects. In other words, as emphasized by G. Mathe, the drug must cure the tumor-bearing patient without killing him by side-toxicity . 

All the anticancer drugs so far known are mutagenic. This means that they induce some mutations within the gene distributions on DNA, such mutations being responsible for delayed relapses in patients who were cured of their initial tumor. Thus, mutagenicity appears to be a very prejudicial side-effect for any therapeutical drug, at least when it reaches too a high level. 

A range of legal drugs is sold by the pharmaceutical industry to treat illnesses of the nervous system. Advances in our understanding of the structure and function of the nervous system has accelerated the development of chemicals for treating diseases such as Parkinson s syndrome, Alzheimer s disease, and mild depression. The treatment of mild depression with drugs like Prozac is a billion dollar industry. On the other hand, some drugs may produce undesirable nervous system side effects that can limit their utility in disease treatment. The anticancer... 

The same is true with cytotoxic (anticancer) drugs, which have many adverse effects. Many neoplastic diseases (leukemia, breast cancer, etc.) show definite rhythms in presenting their symptoms. Thus, if the therapy is tuned according to these rhythms, not only is the disease better treated, but the patient also is protected from side effects. Thus the drug delivery should be programmed according to the disease condition. 

Oxidative stress reduces the rate of cell proliferation, and that occurring during chemotherapy may interfere with the cytotoxic effects of antineoplastic drugs, which depend on rapid proliferation of cancer cells for optimal activity. Antioxidants detoxify ROS and may enhance the anticancer effects of chemotherapy. For some supplements, activities beyond their antioxidant properties, such as inhibition of topoisomerase II or protein tyrosine kinases, may also contribute. ROS cause or contribute to certain side effects that are common to many anticancer drugs, such as gastrointestinal toxicity and muagenesis. ROS also contribute to side effects that occur only with individual agents, such as doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity, cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity, and bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Antioxidants can reduce or prevent many of these side effects, and for some supplements the protective effect results from activities other than their antioxidant properties. Certain side effects, however, such as alopecia and myelosuppression, are not prevented... 

Two of the most important platinum anticancer drugs are cisplatin (2.13) and carboplatin (2.14). Cisplatin is effective against testicular tumours, ovarian carcinoma and some other types of cancer, but relatively inactive against breast and lung cancers it is also a very toxic compound. Side effects include loss of high-frequency hearing, neuropathy and nausea. Kidney damage may also result, but is minimised... 

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