Japanese Journal of Clinical Oncology 30:469-471 (2000)
© 2000 Foundation for Promotion of Cancer Research
Editorial |
On The Immunomodulating Effects of Anti-Cancer Drugs and Their Therapeutic Exploitation
Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY, USA
INTRODUCTION
Anti-proliferative and cytotoxic agents are widely used alone and in combination among themselves and/or with different modalities of treatment in attempts to design effective anti-cancer therapies. In most cases, drug regimens involve the use of the agents at or near the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) with the aim of eradicating the greatest possible number of neoplastic cells. At present, however, it is becoming increasingly clear that several of these agents, in addition to their antitumor action, also affect host phenomena such as angiogenesis (1) and immune responses (2) and that some of these effects may have therapeutic potential. It should be noted that whereas maximum direct antitumor effects are usually obtained at the MTD, the additional potentially beneficial actions on host biological systems are optimally induced at doses which are lower than the MTD (3,4). For biological agents these doses have been
IMMUNOMODULATION BY ANTI-CANCER DRUGS
THERAPEUTIC EXPLOITATION OF THE IMMUNOMODULATING EFFECTS OF DOXORUBICIN
INVESTIGATIONS IN HUMANS
CONCLUDING REMARKS
REFERENCES