Cancer Drugs Flashcards
What are the broad types of chemotherapy?
Alkylating Agents
Cytotoxic Antibiotics
Antimetabolites
Microtubule Inhibitors
Steroid Hormones
Monoclonal Antibodies
How do alkylating Agents work?
and how do each of these subsets directly affect the cellular activity?
Cause Cross linking:
- same strand - unable to carry out transcription
- Between strands - unable to seperate the two strands
A such the DNA can’t open correctly allowing DNA polymerase to work
Name a common alkylating agent that uses phosphamide, and how does this interact with tumour cells?
What agent protects against it?
Clycophosphamide
A lot of tumours have Phosphoramidase - which cleaves off the phosphamide activating the drug
Aldehyde Dehdrogenase
- liver
- Bone marrow
Which Alklyating Agent can cross the blood brain barrier?
Lomustine
What are the three main catergories of Antimetabolites?
Folate Antagonists
Pyrimidine Analogues
Purine Analogues
How do Antimetabolites work?
Interrupt natural compounds needed for DNA synthesis
Name a folate antagonist, and how does it work?
Methotrexate
Dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor
*this is needed to make THF which is a co-factor to Thyamidylate synthase
Name a Pyrimidine Analogue and how does it work?
5 - Fluorouracil
Thymidylate synthase inhibitor
- by acting as a fraudulent nucleotide preventing DTMP production (which is a precursor to pyramidines)
Name some cytotoxic antibiotics:
Dactinomycin
Doxorubicin
Etoposide
Bleomycin
Name some microtubule Inhibitors:
Where must these not be injected?
Vincristine
Vinblastine
*CNS. will kill.
What drug blocks oestrogen receptor?
Tamoxifen
what drug blocks Her2 receptors?
Trastuzumab
What drug blocks testosterone receptors?
Flutamide
Name a CD20 inhibitor used for B cell cancers:
Rituximab
List some common general toxic effects of chemo:
Bone marrow suppression
loss of hair
Gastrointestinal epithelium disruption
Liver, heart kidney dysfunction
List the cells which make up a tumour - and how this affects drugs which can be used:
Solid tumours are made up of:
- *dividing cells
- cell cycle drugs work well here
- *non dividing cells
- not many drugs work here
- often cause relapses
- **Cells that are no longer dividing but contribute to tumour size.
- no issues with these
How must nitrogen mustards be given?
- name a type
and name 2 conditions they are always used in
IV
Cyclophosphamide
hodgkins
non-hodgkins
What is Melphalan?
what is it used to treat?
Melphalan is a nitrogen mustard, alkylating agent, which is much more stable and less distribution.
used in:
- multiple myeloma
- breast cancer
- ovarian cancer
What specific part of the DNA do alkylating agents target?
N7 of purine nucleotides
By blocking dihydrofolate reductase, what do you end up inhibiting the production off?
Purines and pyrimidines
Name a pyrimidine analogue:
5 fluorouracil
- prevents thymidine formation
Name a purine analogue:
mercaptopurine
How does dactinomycin work? and what is it?
Dactinomycin is cytotoxic antibiotic
Binds within the minor groove of DNA helix, causes RNA polymerase to defect
How does doxorubicin work? and what is it?
Cytotoxic antibiotic
Binds to sugar backbone of DNA nucleotides causing local uncoiling.
leads to failure of DNA and RNA polymerase action
What is vincristine, and how does it work?
Vincristine is a microtubule inhibitor.
Blocks formation of tubulin formation - blocking microtubules
Name a pituitary hormone inhibitor that reduces LH hormone:
Prostap
What is the only drugs that work in the M phase?
Microtubule inhibitors:
Vincristine
Vinblastine
What drug is used in lung cancer?
Cisplatin -
platinum based
What enzyme breaks down 6 mercaptopurine?
Xanthine oxidase
