Doxorubicin
Doxorubicin Information
- Other names: Adriamycin, Doxil
- Manufactured by: APP Pharmaceuticals, Bedford Laboratories, Janssen Products, Pfizer Inc., Teva Parenteral Medicines
- FDA-approved: Yes
- Used or tested in: Bladder cancer, breast cancer, head and neck cancer, leukemia, liver cancer, lung cancer, lymphomas, mesothelioma, multiple myeloma, neuroblastoma, ovarian cancer, pancreatic cancer, prostate cancer, sarcomas, stomach cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid cancer, uterine cancer
Doxorubicin is one of the most commonly used chemotherapeutic agents used to treat mesothelioma patients and possibly the most studied. Doxorubicin is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in a number of cancers, including breast cancer and lung cancer, and its benefits continue to be researched in mesothelioma.
Study results show that doxorubicin alone can extend life span in mesothelioma patients. The results show even more improved survival times when it is used along with other chemotherapy drugs, but using such a combination has potential to cause long-term side effects.
If you're a mesothelioma patient receiving doxorubicin or another chemotherapy agent, find out what you should expect. To learn about chemotherapy and other mesothelioma treatments, request a free informational packet.
How is Doxorubicin Administered?
Doxorubicin is generally administered intravenously for about 30 minutes. Some studies are also testing it in a heated chemotherapy capacity. When doxorubicin is used as heated chemotherapy, surgeons put the heated drug inside the chest or abdominal cavity during surgery so it has direct contact with cancer growth.
What are Doxorubicin's Side Effects?
The most common side effects of doxorubicin include hair loss, darkening of nails, nausea, vomiting, bruising, abnormal heart beat and stomach pain. Patients treated with doxorubicin also have a slightly elevated risk of developing leukemia years after doxorubicin treatment. This is more common in patients treated with a combination of doxorubicin and other chemotherapy drugs.
Study Results of Doxorubicin
In clinical trials, doxorubicin consistently shows positive results, with most trials obtaining a median life span of seven to nine months. By combining doxorubicin with other chemotherapy agents, some groups of patients have extended the median life expectancy by several years, drastically longer than the typical mesothelioma survival of four to 12 months with only basic care.
In one study, 67 peritoneal mesothelioma patients were treated with doxorubicin and the chemotherapy drugs paclitaxel and cisplatin. The patients achieved a median survival of 79 months, or about 6.6 years, and one patient lived past 12 years. This shows a major potential for using doxorubicin alongside other chemotherapy drugs.
A small study published in 2010 confirmed this. It studied the efficacy of the chemotherapy drug cisplatin alone and in combination with other chemotherapy agents. The study found that cisplatin was most effective in mesothelioma patients when it was combined with doxorubicin rather than with gemcitabine or pemetrexed, two other successful chemotherapy drugs.
Fast Fact: Because of increased demand and manufacturing delays of doxorubicin, most pharmaceutical companies had a shortage of the drug in 2011.If you want access to doxorubicin and other successful experimental drugs, contact the Mesothelioma Center. Our Patient Advocates can help you find and enroll in clinical trials testing doxorubicin or other chemotherapy agents. Fill out the form on our Clinical Trials page to contact a Patient Advocate.
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Last Modified Monday, May 14th, 2012 | Disclaimer | Privacy Policy |
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