A Look at the Effects of Bisphosphonates and the Benefits It Offers in Treating Bone Loss.DUBLIN, Ireland -- Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c31990) has announced the addition of Bisphosphonates and Other Bone-Targeting Compounds in the Treatment of Cancer to their offering Bisphosphonates have been in use for approximately 25 years, most commonly to treat diseases characterized by bone loss, such as osteoporosis. Bisphosphonates are also used in adjunctive treatment of cancers that involve bone-related complications. Currently, bisphosphonates are approved only for the treatment of patients with advanced cancer who have bone metastases bone metastases Oncology Cancer that has spread from a primary tumor to the bone , but researchers are investigating the direct antitumor an·ti·tu·mor also an·ti·tu·mor·al adj. Counteracting or preventing the formation of malignant tumors; anticancer. Adj. 1. effects of these agents and their benefits in treating bone loss resulting from hormonal cancer treatment. Decision Resources presents an overview of bisphosphonate treatment, including a description of bone remodeling bone remodeling See Remodeling. , currently available agents, and safety concerns. We discuss the use of bisphosphonates in the treatment of bone metastases and bone loss in breast and prostate cancer prostate cancer, cancer originating in the prostate gland. Prostate cancer is the leading malignancy in men in the United States and is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in men. patients and as antitumor agents. We also profile emerging nonbisphosphonate agents that target bone and may pose significant competition for bisphosphonates. Business Implications - Intravenous (IV) treatment with bisphosphonates such as pamidronate (Novartis's Aredia) and zoledronic acid zoledronic acid /zo·le·dron·ic ac·id/ (zo´le-dron?ik) a bisphosphonate inhibitor of osteoclastic bone resorption, used for the treatment of hypercalcemia of malignancy. (Novartis's Zometa), in conjunction with standard chemotherapy, has become the standard of care for patients with bone lesions due to multiple myeloma multiple myeloma A malignant proliferation of abnormal plasma cells that populate the marrow-containing bones of the body. The affected plasma cells produce myeloma protein, a monoclonal antibody that replaces normal antibodies in the blood, thereby increasing susceptibility and for patients with solid tumors who have bone metastases. These agents are used to reduce the incidence of bone-metastasis-related exacerbations such as bone pain, fractures, and spinal cord compression Spinal cord compression develops when the spinal cord is compressed by bone fragments from a vertebral fracture, a tumor, abscess, ruptured intervertebral disc or other lesion. . - A major new potential market segment for bisphosphonates in oncology is the prevention of bone loss in patients with early-stage breast and prostate cancer who are being treated with hormonal therapies. Hormonal therapies pose the risk of rapid and severe bone loss. Currently, the most efficacious treatment appears to be zoledronic acid, and several Phase III trials of IV zoledronic acid are ongoing in these patient populations. - The direct antitumor effects of bisphosphonates and their clinical significance (e.g., in reducing tumor burden tumor burden n. The total mass of tumor tissue carried by an individual with cancer. and improving patient survival) are controversial. Several in vitro studies, primarily in cultured breast and prostate cancer cell lines, have demonstrated that bisphosphonates inhibit tumor cell proliferation and induce apoptosis. In addition, combinations of nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates with various standard anticancer agents have demonstrated synergistic antitumor effects. Several large clinical trials that are designed to determine the efficacy of bisphosphonates as antitumor agents are ongoing in the United States and Europe. - Some pharmaceutical companies are developing nonbisphosphonate bone-targeting compounds for use in oncology treatments. Amgen is developing a monoclonal antibody (MAb) drug, denosumab, for bone loss in postmenopausal post·men·o·paus·al adj. Of or occurring in the time following menopause. postmenopausal Change of life Gynecology adjective Referring to the time in ♀ when menstrual periods stop for ≥ 1 yr osteoporosis and in oncology indications; Ariad is developing nonbisphosphonate compounds that target both bone and the mammalian target of rapamycin The mammalian target of rapamycin, commonly known as mTOR, is a serine/threonine protein kinase that regulates cell growth, cell proliferation, cell motility, cell survival, protein synthesis, and transcription. (mTOR), a signaling kinase that is central to disease pathways in many types of cancer. Ariad's compounds are in the preclinical stage, so they have yet to achieve proof of principle in humans. However, compounds that localize lo·cal·ize v. lo·cal·ized, lo·cal·iz·ing, lo·cal·iz·es v.tr. 1. To make local: decentralize and localize political authority. 2. in bone and specifically target cancer pathways may have a greater potential for antitumor efficacy than the bisphosphonates. Topics Covered - Introduction - An Overview of Bisphosphonate Treatment - Bisphosphonates to Treat Bone Metastases - Bisphosphonates to Treat Bone Loss in Breast and Prostate Cancer - Bisphosphonates as Direct Antitumor Agents - Companies Developing Nonbisphosphonate Bone- Targeting Cancer Treatments - Outlook Companies mentioned in this report include: - Novartis - Amgen - Ariad - GlaxoSmithKline - Roche - Procer & Gamble - Sanofi-Aventis - Schering - Merck - AstraZeneca - TAP Pharmaceuticals - Bristol-Myers Squibb For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c31990 |
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