Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology
Cancer represents a significant global health and economic burden due to its high mortality rates. While effective in some instances, traditional chemotherapy often falls short of entirely eradicating various types of cancer. It can cause severe side effects due to harm to healthy cells. Two therape...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Heliyon |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844024007011 |
| _version_ | 1797304594319015936 |
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| author | Nusrat Jan Shazia Sofi Hina Qayoom Aisha Shabir Burhan Ul Haq Muzaffar A. Macha Abdullah Almilaibary Manzoor Ahmad Mir |
| author_facet | Nusrat Jan Shazia Sofi Hina Qayoom Aisha Shabir Burhan Ul Haq Muzaffar A. Macha Abdullah Almilaibary Manzoor Ahmad Mir |
| author_sort | Nusrat Jan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Cancer represents a significant global health and economic burden due to its high mortality rates. While effective in some instances, traditional chemotherapy often falls short of entirely eradicating various types of cancer. It can cause severe side effects due to harm to healthy cells. Two therapeutic approaches have risen to the forefront to address these limitations: metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) and drug repurposing. Metronomic chemotherapy is an innovative approach that breaks from traditional models. It involves the administration of chemotherapeutic regimens at lower doses, without long drug-free intervals that have previously been a hallmark of such treatments. This method offers a significant reduction in side effects and improved disease management. Simultaneously, drug repurposing has gained considerable attraction in cancer treatment. This approach involves utilizing existing drugs, initially developed for other therapeutic purposes, as potential cancer treatments. The application of known drugs in a new context accelerates the timeline from laboratory to patient due to pre-existing safety and dosage data. The intersection of these two strategies gives rise to a novel therapeutic approach named ‘Metronomics.’ This approach encapsulates the benefits of both MCT and drug repurposing, leading to reduced toxicity, potential for oral administration, improved patient quality of life, accelerated clinical implementation, and enhanced affordability. Numerous clinical studies have endorsed the efficacy of metronomic chemotherapy with tolerable side effects, underlining the potential of Metronomics in better cancer management, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This review underscores the benefits and applications of metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing, specifically in the context of breast cancer, showcasing the promising results of pre-clinical and clinical studies. However, we acknowledge the necessity of additional clinical investigations to definitively establish the role of metronomic chemotherapy in conjunction with other treatments in comprehensive cancer management. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T00:12:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f821f5523bf84c559ea71140c3764330 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2405-8440 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T00:12:41Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Heliyon |
| spelling | doaj.art-f821f5523bf84c559ea71140c37643302024-02-17T06:38:24ZengElsevierHeliyon2405-84402024-02-01103e24670Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncologyNusrat Jan0Shazia Sofi1Hina Qayoom2Aisha Shabir3Burhan Ul Haq4Muzaffar A. Macha5Abdullah Almilaibary6Manzoor Ahmad Mir7Department of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, IndiaDepartment of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, IndiaDepartment of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, IndiaDepartment of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, IndiaDepartment of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, IndiaWatson-Crick Centre for Molecular Medicine, Islamic University of Science and Technology, Pulwama, IndiaDepartment of Family and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Al Baha University, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, India; Corresponding author. Head Department of Bioresources, School of Biological Sciences, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, J&K, India.Cancer represents a significant global health and economic burden due to its high mortality rates. While effective in some instances, traditional chemotherapy often falls short of entirely eradicating various types of cancer. It can cause severe side effects due to harm to healthy cells. Two therapeutic approaches have risen to the forefront to address these limitations: metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) and drug repurposing. Metronomic chemotherapy is an innovative approach that breaks from traditional models. It involves the administration of chemotherapeutic regimens at lower doses, without long drug-free intervals that have previously been a hallmark of such treatments. This method offers a significant reduction in side effects and improved disease management. Simultaneously, drug repurposing has gained considerable attraction in cancer treatment. This approach involves utilizing existing drugs, initially developed for other therapeutic purposes, as potential cancer treatments. The application of known drugs in a new context accelerates the timeline from laboratory to patient due to pre-existing safety and dosage data. The intersection of these two strategies gives rise to a novel therapeutic approach named ‘Metronomics.’ This approach encapsulates the benefits of both MCT and drug repurposing, leading to reduced toxicity, potential for oral administration, improved patient quality of life, accelerated clinical implementation, and enhanced affordability. Numerous clinical studies have endorsed the efficacy of metronomic chemotherapy with tolerable side effects, underlining the potential of Metronomics in better cancer management, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. This review underscores the benefits and applications of metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing, specifically in the context of breast cancer, showcasing the promising results of pre-clinical and clinical studies. However, we acknowledge the necessity of additional clinical investigations to definitively establish the role of metronomic chemotherapy in conjunction with other treatments in comprehensive cancer management.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844024007011Metronomic chemotherapyConventional chemotherapyDrug repurposingBreast cancerDrug resistanceAngiogenesis |
| spellingShingle | Nusrat Jan Shazia Sofi Hina Qayoom Aisha Shabir Burhan Ul Haq Muzaffar A. Macha Abdullah Almilaibary Manzoor Ahmad Mir Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology Heliyon Metronomic chemotherapy Conventional chemotherapy Drug repurposing Breast cancer Drug resistance Angiogenesis |
| title | Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology |
| title_full | Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology |
| title_fullStr | Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology |
| title_full_unstemmed | Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology |
| title_short | Metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing: A paradigm shift in oncology |
| title_sort | metronomic chemotherapy and drug repurposing a paradigm shift in oncology |
| topic | Metronomic chemotherapy Conventional chemotherapy Drug repurposing Breast cancer Drug resistance Angiogenesis |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844024007011 |
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