Showing posts with label AGENTS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AGENTS. Show all posts

Monday, January 10, 2011

ANTI NEOPLASTIC AGENTS

Anti Neoplastic agents are used to treat Cancer , Malignancy or Neoplasm . Cancer is a condition where a group of cells shows uncontrolled growth or abnormal cell division takes place . The newly produced cellas are ineffective and useless to the body, leading to a disease called Cancer . This happens due to genetic changes within the cell .
Anti Neoplastic agents are classified in following way :
1- Alkylating Agents : e.g Cyclophasphamide , Mechlorethamine , Chlorambucil , Ifosfamide .
2- Antimetabolites or Antibiotics : e.g. Purine analogues ( Azathioprine , Mercaptopurine , Thioguanine , Fludarabine , Pentostatin , Cladribine ) , Pyrimidine analogues ( 5-Fluorouracil , Floxuridine , Cytosine arabinoside ) and Antifolates ( Methotrexate , Trimethoprim ) . This group of Anti Neoplastic agents is very big and widely used .
3-Alkaloides and Terpenoides : These are plant extractions and e.g. Vincristine , Vinblastine , Venorelbine , Videsine , Podophyllotoxin , Docetaxel , Paclitaxel .
4- Topoisomerase Inhibitors : These agents also plant exractions but semisynthetic by nature . e.g. Camptothecins such as Irinotecan , Topotecan , Amsacrine , Etoposide , Teniposide . These group of Anti Neoplastic agents are changed at molecular level that is why called Semisynthetic derivatives .
5- Cytotoxic antibiotics : Actinomycin , Bleomycin ,Plicamycin , Mitoycin . Anthracycline Antibiotics such as Doxorubicin , Daunorubicin , Valrubicin , Idarubicin , Epirubicin , Mitoxatrone also included in Cancer treatment but these agents never used to treat infections .
All Anti Neoplastic agents are cytotoxic and have to be used with only Oncologist i.e. Cancer specialist's advice .