The crossover of bisphosphonates to cancer therapy.

Abstract

Bisphosphonates form a class of drugs commonly used to treat disorders of osteoclastic bone resorption, including osteoporosis, Paget's disease of the bone, rheumatoid arthritis, and bone metastases. Although long established as the therapy of choice to treat such disorders, bisphosphonates' potential in treating cancer is garnering interest. Bisphosphonates have been demonstrated to inhibit tumor growth and metastasis, induce apoptosis in tumor cells, and encourage immune reactions against tumor cells. Current applications of bisphosphonates in cancer treatment include their use to treat skeletal metastases and as an adjuvant to endocrine therapy. This review explores bisphosphonates' current clinical utility and potential as a crossover cancer therapy.

• Authors: Merry Sun, Jameel Iqbal, Sukhjeet Singh, Li Sun, Mone Zaidi
• Journal: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences (Ann N Y Acad Sci) Vol. 1211 Pg. 107-12 (Nov 2010) ISSN: 1749-6632 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 21062299 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)
• Copyright: © 2010 New York Academy of Sciences.

Chemical References

• Antineoplastic Agents
• Diphosphonates

Topics

• Animals
• Antineoplastic Agents (therapeutic use)
• Bone Neoplasms (drug therapy, physiopathology)
• Diphosphonates (therapeutic use)
• Humans
• Neoplasms (drug therapy, physiopathology)