DD Anti-tumor agents

Question 1

Describe these different kinds of chemotherapy w/ their relation to surgery.
- Primary Induction Chemotherapy

• Neoadjuvant
• Adjuvant

Answer 1

• Primary Induction Chemotherapy: No surgery or radiation
• Neoadjuvant: Before surgery/radiation trying to make treatment more effective and less damaging.
• Adjuvant: Use after surgery/radiation

Question 2

Goal of Primary Chemotherapy

Answer 2

Palliate tumor-related symptoms, improve quality of life and extend life

Question 3

Goal of neoadjuvant chemotherapy

Answer 3

Increase effectiveness of surgery/radiation

Question 4

Goal of adjuvant

Answer 4

reduce incidence of local and systemic recurrence of cancer by killing metastatic cells

Question 5

Which of the two, targeted therapy or conventional cytotoxics are selected based on the specific defect?

Answer 5

targeted therapy

-can get to pathways in damaged cells ONLY vs cytotoxic which damages all cells

Question 6

Which of the two, targeted therapy or conventional cytotoxics are selected based on tumor site

Answer 6

conventional cytotoxics

-kills tumor and normal cells

Question 7

How do alkylating agents work in cancer

Answer 7

form covalent chemical adducts and forms crosslinks in DNA of tumor cells

-prevents DNA replication

Question 8

Which tumor agents are used for hematological malignancies?

Answer 8

antimetabolites - methotrexate

Question 9

What does tamoxifen do?

Answer 9

anti-androgens that bind to androgen receptors and block steroid binding - preventing their function

Question 10

What does rituximab do?

Answer 10

Antibody -

antiCD20 used to treat B cell tumors

Question 11

What is bevacizumab/avastin?

Answer 11

Antibody -

anti-VEGF for colon cancer

Question 12

What drug can you give CML patients w/ mutated BCR-ABL who are resistent to Imatinib?

Answer 12

Dasatinib