A 10-year experience in testicular tissue cryopreservation for boys under 18 years of age: What can be learned from 350 cases?

BACKGROUND: A growing number of centers worldwide are preserving testicular tissue (TT) of young boys at risk of fertility loss to preserve their fertility. Data in this regard are scarce and experience sharing is essential to the optimization of the process. OBJECTIVES: This report of our 10-year activity of pediatric fertility preservation (FP) has the objective to (1) improve knowledge regarding the feasibility, acceptability, safety, and potential usefulness of the procedure; (2) analyze the impact of chemotherapy on spermatogonia in the cryopreserved TT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: For this retrospective study of data prospectively recorded, we included all boys under 18 years of age referred to the FP consultation of our academic network between October 2009 and December 2019. Characteristics of patients and cryopreservation of testicular tissue (CTT) were extracted from the clinical database. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess factors associated with the risk of absence of spermatogonia in the TT. RESULTS: Three hundred and sixty-nine patients (7.2 years; 0.5-17.0) were referred to the FP consultation for malignant (70%) or non-malignant (30%) disease, of whom 88% were candidates for CTT, after a previous chemotherapy exposure (78%). The rate of recorded immediate adverse events was 3.5%, with painful episodes dominating. Spermatogonia were detected in the majority of TTs: 91.1% of those exposed to chemotherapy and 92.3% of those not exposed (p = 0.962). In multivariate analysis, the risk of absence of spermatogonia was almost three-fold higher in boys > 10 years of age ([OR] 2.74, 95% CI 1.09-7.26, p = 0.035) and four-fold higher in boys exposed to alkylating agents prior to CTT ([OR] 4.09, 95% CI 1.32-17.94, p = 0.028). DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: This large series of pediatric FP shows that this procedure is well accepted, feasible, and safe in the short term, strengthening its place in the clinical care pathway of young patients requiring a highly gonadotoxic treatment. Our results demonstrate that CTT post-chemotherapy does not impair the chance to preserve spermatogonia in the TT except when the treatment includes alkylating agents. More data on post-CTT follow-up are still required to ensure the long-term safety and usefulness of the procedure.

Pharmacokinetics and Metabolism of Melflufen, an Alkylating Peptide-Drug Conjugate, in Patients with Relapsed Refractory Multiple Myeloma.

Melphalan flufenamide (melflufen) is a novel lipophilic peptide-drug conjugate recently approved in the European Union and the United Kingdom for the treatment of relapsed refractory multiple myeloma. Melflufen rapidly crosses the cell membrane, and inside tumor cells, melflufen utilizes peptidases and esterases to release entrapped hydrophilic metabolites with alkylating activity. In vitro, in whole blood, melflufen was rapidly distributed into blood cells and quickly converted to its main metabolite melphalan, with maximum cellular concentrations of noncovalently bound melflufen and melphalan after 1 and 6 minutes, respectively. Melphalan outflow from blood cells was slow, with peak concentrations in plasma after 25 minutes. The pharmacokinetics of melflufen was best described by a 2-compartment model. Following a 30-minutes intravenous infusion of 40 mg in 27 patients with relapsed refactory multiple myeloma, mean half-life in the α phase of the curve was 1.24 minutes, half-life in the ß phase of the curve 26.7 minutes, and clearance 13.4 L/min. Desethyl-melflufen exposure was below 20% compared to melflufen. Based on population analysis (298 patients with relapsed refactory multiple myeloma), the melphalan pharmacokinetics were well characterized by a 3-compartment model with melflufen dosing into a peripheral compartment, assuming instantaneous distribution of melflufen into cells and subsequent rapid metabolism to melphalan. Mean clearance and central and deep peripheral volumes of distribution were 22.4 L/h, 2.70 L, and 51.3 L, respectively. Clearance increased and maximum concentration decreased with increasing body weight and estimated glomerular filtration rate. In conclusion, melflufen administration differs from melphalan administration by a more rapid distribution into cells, which, in conjunction with a rapid intracellular metabolism, allows for higher maximum concentrations of alkylating agents, and by a more extensive distribution of melphalan to peripheral tissues.

Long-term Outcomes of Protocol-Based Treatment for Newly Diagnosed Medulloblastoma.

PURPOSE: The Korean Society of Pediatric Neuro-Oncology (KSPNO) conducted treatment strategies for children with medulloblastoma (MB) by using alkylating agents for maintenance chemotherapy or tandem high-dose chemotherapy (HDC) with autologous stem cell rescue (ASCR) according to the risk stratification. The purpose of the study was to assess treatment outcomes and complications based on risk-adapted treatment and HDC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Fifty-nine patients diagnosed with MB were enrolled in this study. Patients in the standard-risk (SR) group received radiotherapy (RT) after surgery and chemotherapy using the KSPNO M051 regimen. Patients in the high-risk (HR) group received two and four chemotherapy cycles according to the KSPNO S081 protocol before and after reduced RT for age following surgery and two cycles of tandem HDC with ASCR consolidation treatment. RESULTS: In the SR group, 24 patients showed 5-year event-free survival (EFS) and overall survival (OS) estimates of 86.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 73.6 to 100) and 95.8% (95% CI, 88.2 to 100), respectively. In the HR group, more infectious complications and mortality occurred during the second HDC than during the first. In the HR group, the 5-year EFS and OS estimates were 65.5% (95% CI, 51.4 to 83.4) and 72.3% (95% CI, 58.4 to 89.6), respectively. CONCLUSION: High intensity of alkylating agents for SR resulted in similar outcomes but with a high incidence of hematologic toxicity. Tandem HDC with ASCR for HR induced favorable EFS and OS estimates compared to those reported previously. However, infectious complications and treatment-related mortalities suggest that a reduced chemotherapy dose is necessary, especially for the second HDC.

Melflufen in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma refractory to prior alkylators: A subgroup analysis from the OCEAN study.

Melphalan flufenamide (melflufen), a first-in-class alkylating peptide-drug conjugate, plus dexamethasone demonstrated superior progression-free survival (PFS), but not overall survival (OS), versus pomalidomide plus dexamethasone in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma in the OCEAN study. Time to progression (TTP) <36 months after a prior autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) was a negative prognostic factor for OS with melflufen. This post hoc exploratory analysis evaluated patients refractory to prior alkylators (e.g., cyclophosphamide and melphalan) in OCEAN. In 153 patients refractory to prior alkylators (melflufen, n = 78; pomalidomide, n = 75), the melflufen and pomalidomide arms had similar median PFS (5.6 months [95% CI, 4.2-8.3] vs. 4.7 months [95% CI, 3.1-7.3]; hazard ratio [HR], 0.92 [95% CI, 0.63-1.33]) and OS (23.4 months [95% CI, 14.4-31.7] vs. 20.0 months [95% CI, 12.0-28.7]; HR, 0.92 [95% CI, 0.62-1.38]). Among alkylator-refractory patients with a TTP ≥ 36 months after a prior ASCT or no prior ASCT (melflufen, n = 54; pomalidomide, n = 53), the observed median PFS and OS were longer in the melflufen arm than the pomalidomide arm. The safety profile of melflufen was consistent with previous reports. These results suggest that melflufen is safe and effective in patients with alkylator-refractory disease, suggesting differentiated activity from other alkylators.

Longitudinal assessment of Leydig cell function in male survivors of childhood cancer.

BACKGROUND: As the number and longevity of childhood cancer survivors increases, assessing treatment-associated late effects remains crucial. We longitudinally examined the incidence of and associated risk factors for Leydig cell dysfunction (LCD) and Leydig cell failure (LCF) in men treated for pediatric cancers at our institution. PROCEDURE: We performed a retrospective longitudinal cohort study of adult male survivors treated for various childhood cancers who are at risk for LCD. The outcomes of interest were serum testosterone and luteinizing hormone (LH) levels during childhood and adulthood. Risk factors assessed included treatment with stem cell transplant, total body irradiation (TBI), and exposure to alkylating agents. RESULTS: Out of 118 eligible subjects, 7.6% had LCF and 14.4% had LCD. Median age at last testosterone level was 20 years. Subjects with sufficient testosterone levels in adulthood (N = 105) remained sufficient for a mean of 11.1 years following completion of cancer treatment. We found significant associations between LCF and treatment with TBI (p < .003) and between LCF in adulthood and testosterone insufficiency in childhood (p < .001). No statistically significant association was found between LCF and cyclophosphamide equivalent dose greater than 20 g/m2 (p = .2). LCF/LCD occurred in a small number of nonirradiated patients treated with the highest doses of alkylators. CONCLUSIONS: Incidence of LCF and LCD are low in male survivors of childhood cancer. Longitudinally, there is an association between childhood testosterone insufficiency and LCF in adulthood. Alkylating agents and stem cell transplant without TBI were not associated with LCF in our study.

Modulating MGMT expression through interfering with cell signaling pathways.

Guanine O6-alkylating agents are widely used as first-line chemotherapeutic drugs due to their ability to induce cytotoxic DNA damage. However, a major hurdle in their effectiveness is the emergence of chemoresistance, largely attributed to the DNA repair pathway mediated by O6-methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT). MGMT plays an important role in removing the alkyl groups from lethal O6-alkylguanine (O6-AlkylG) adducts formed by chemotherapeutic alkylating agents. By doing so, MGMT enables tumor cells to evade apoptosis and develop drug resistance toward DNA alkylating agents. Although covalent inhibitors of MGMT, such as O6-benzylguanine (O6-BG) and O6-(4-bromothenyl)guanine (O6-4-BTG or lomeguatrib), have been explored in clinical settings, their utility is limited due to severe delayed hematological toxicity observed in most patients when combined with alkylating agents. Therefore, there is an urgent need to identify new targets and unravel the underlying molecular mechanisms and to develop alternative therapeutic strategies that can overcome MGMT-mediated tumor resistance. In this context, the regulation of MGMT expression via interfering the specific cell signaling pathways (e.g., Wnt/ß-catenin, NF-κB, Hedgehog, PI3K/AKT/mTOR, JAK/STAT) emerges as a promising strategy for overcoming tumor resistance, and ultimately enhancing the efficacy of DNA alkylating agents in chemotherapy.

Histone Deacetylases (HDAC) Inhibitor-Valproic Acid Sensitizes Human Melanoma Cells to Dacarbazine and PARP Inhibitor.

The inhibition of histone deacetylases (HDACs) holds promise as a potential anti-cancer therapy as histone and non-histone protein acetylation is frequently disrupted in cancer, leading to cancer initiation and progression. Additionally, the use of a histone deacetylase inhibitor (HDACi) such as the class I HDAC inhibitor-valproic acid (VPA) has been shown to enhance the effectiveness of DNA-damaging factors, such as cisplatin or radiation. In this study, we found that the use of VPA in combination with talazoparib (BMN-673-PARP1 inhibitor-PARPi) and/or Dacarbazine (DTIC-alkylating agent) resulted in an increased rate of DNA double strand breaks (DSBs) and reduced survival (while not affecting primary melanocytes) and the proliferation of melanoma cells. Furthermore, the pharmacological inhibition of class I HDACs sensitizes melanoma cells to apoptosis following exposure to DTIC and BMN-673. In addition, the inhibition of HDACs causes the sensitization of melanoma cells to DTIV and BMN-673 in melanoma xenografts in vivo. At the mRNA and protein level, the histone deacetylase inhibitor downregulated RAD51 and FANCD2. This study aims to demonstrate that combining an HDACi, alkylating agent and PARPi could potentially enhance the treatment of melanoma, which is commonly recognized as being among the most aggressive malignant tumors. The findings presented here point to a scenario in which HDACs, via enhancing the HR-dependent repair of DSBs created during the processing of DNA lesions, are essential nodes in the resistance of malignant melanoma cells to methylating agent-based therapies.

Revisiting the role of alkylating agents in multiple myeloma: Up-to-date evidence and future perspectives.

From the 1960s to the early 2000s, alkylating agents (e.g., melphalan, cyclophosphamide, and bendamustine) remained a key component of standard therapy for newly-diagnosed or relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma (MM). Later on, their associated toxicities (including second primary malignancies) and the unprecedented efficacy of novel therapies have led clinicians to increasingly consider alkylator-free approaches. Meanwhile, new alkylating agents (e.g., melflufen) and new applications of old alkylators (e.g., lymphodepletion before chimeric antigen receptor T-cell [CAR-T] therapy) have emerged in recent years. Given the expanding use of antigen-directed modalities (e.g., monoclonal antibodies, bispecific antibodies, and CAR-T therapy), this review explores the current and future role of alkylating agents in different treatment settings (e.g., induction, consolidation, stem cell mobilization, pre-transplant conditioning, salvage, bridging, and lymphodepleting chemotherapy) to ellucidate the role of alkylator-based regimens in modern-day MM management.

Current and Emerging Treatment Options for Patients With Relapsed Small-cell Lung Carcinoma: A Systematic Literature Review.

Second-line treatment options are limited for patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). We conducted a PRISMA-standard systematic literature review to evaluate the treatment landscape for patients with relapsed SCLC (PROSPERO number: CRD42022299759). Systematic searches of MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Library were performed (October 2022) to identify publications (prior 5 years) from prospective studies of therapies for relapsed SCLC. Publications were screened against predetermined eligibility criteria; data were extracted to standardized fields. Publication quality was assessed using GRADE. The data were analyzed descriptively, grouped by drug class. Overall, 77 publications involving 6349 patients were included. Studies of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) with established cancer indications accounted for 24 publications; topoisomerase I inhibitors for 15; checkpoint inhibitors (CPIs) for 11, and alkylating agents for 9 publications. The remaining 18 publications featured chemotherapies, small-molecule inhibitors, investigational TKIs and monoclonal antibodies, and a cancer vaccine. According to GRADE assessment, 69% of the publications reported low-/very-low-quality evidence; quality limitations included lack of randomization and small sample sizes. Only 6 publications/6 trials reported phase 3 data; 5 publications/2 trials reported phase 2/3 results. Overall, the clinical potential of alkylating agents and CPIs remained unclear; investigations of combination approaches and biomarker-directed usage are warranted. Phase 2 data from TKI trials were consistently promising; no phase 3 data were available. Phase 2 data for a liposomal formulation of irinotecan were promising. We confirmed an absence of promising investigational drug/regimens in late-stage development; thus, relapsed SCLC remains an area of high unmet need.

Synthesis and antiproliferative activities of steroidal lactam conjugates bearing a new nitrogen mustard.

Alkylating agents are potent anticancer compounds that exert their anticancer properties through the inhibition of cell replication and transcription leading to cell death. Despite the numerous benefits, these agents also have serious drawbacks such as their high toxicity and low specificity towards cancer cells. As previously reported by our group, conjugation of alkylating agents with azasteroids can reduce their systemic toxicity and enhance their anticancer activity. In this work, novel steroidal alkylating agents bearing POPAM-OH were synthesized and their anticancer efficacy was evaluated in vitro and in vivo. All the novel hybrids demonstrated high antiproliferative effects against 5 different cancer cell lines in the low micromolar range. Treatment of SCID mice bearing SKOV-3 or PC-3 tumor xenografts with the most potent hybrid 19 led to significant reduction of tumor size (tumor inhibition TI = 95% in SKOV3 models and TI = 85.2% in PC3 models). Importantly, the acute toxicity of hybrid 19 (LD10 = 36 µΜ, LD50 = 62 µΜ) in CB17 SCID mice exhibited three-fold decrease compared to the acute toxicity of previously reported hybrids of POPAM-NH2. This is an important finding since systemic cytotoxicity is a critical limitation of alkylating agents. Collectively, the steroidal conjugates of POPAM-OH displayed significant anticancer efficacy and reduced toxicity in vitro and in vivo rendering them as good candidates for cancer therapy.

Cardiovascular toxic effects of antitumor agents: Pathogenetic mechanisms.

Cancer treatment is associated with various side effects of antitumor agents, which increase the morbidity and mortality of these patients. Cardiovascular complications are considered to be one of the most important side effect of the anticancer drugs. The antitumor drugs that express cardiovascular effects include anthracyclines, tyrosine kinase inhibitors, taxanes, fluoropyrimidines, alkylating agents, vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors, immune checkpoint inhibitors, proteasome inhibitors and human epidermal growth receptor type 2 antibodies. The spectrum of cardiovascular effects of anticancer drugs is broad and include, among others, heart failure, arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation and ventricular tachyarrhythmias, hypertension (systemic or pulmonary), cardiomyopathy, myocarditis, valve disease, pericardial disease, vascular events (arterial thrombosis, venous thromboembolism) and myocardial ischemia (acute coronary syndrome, angina). The molecular mechanisms by which anti-cancer therapies lead to cardiotoxicity are diverse and vary according to the specific type of agent used. They include oxidative stress, topoisomerase 2-ß inhibition in cardiomyocytes, inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, apoptosis, disruption of Ca2+ homeostasis, mitochondrial dysfunction, DNA damage, increase in various circulating microRNAs levels, alterations in the function of voltage-gated potassium channels. The management of cardiovascular complications in cancer patients is a new challenge for oncologists and cardiologists. Thus the cardio-oncology field has developed the last decade in order to precisely predict and efficiently treat the cancer treatment-related cardiovascular diseases.

Pomalidomide Treatment in Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma Patients-Real-World Data From Hungary.

Pomalidomide is a third generation immunomodulatory drug in the treatment of refractory and relapsed multiple myeloma patients. Our aim was to investigate the efficacy and safety of pomalidomide therapy in a real world setting. Eighty-six Hungarian patients were included, 45 of whom received pomalidomide ± an alkylating agent, while in 38 of them pomalidomide was combined with a proteasome inhibitor. 56 patients (65%) showed any response to the treatment with 18 complete or very good partial remissions and 38 partial remissions. At a median duration of follow-up of 18.6 months, the median progression-free survival (PFS) was 9.03 months, while the median overall survival (OS) was 16.53 months in the whole cohort. Patients with early stage disease (R-ISS 1 and 2) had better survival results than those with stage 3 myeloma (p = 0.002). Neither the number of prior treatment lines, nor lenalidomide refractoriness had a significant impact on PFS. PFS was found similar between the cohort of patients with impaired renal function and the cohort without kidney involvement. During the study, eight mortal infections and two fatal bleeding complications occurred, however, mild hematologic and gastrointestinal toxicities were identified as the most frequent adverse events. The results of our investigations confirm that pomalidomide is an effective treatment option for relapsed/refractory MM, besides, the safety profile is satisfactory in subjects with both normal and impaired renal function.

Treatment-Associated Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Following Autologous Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant and Lenalidomide Maintenance in Patients With Multiple Myeloma.

Secondary malignancies including leukemia are an increasing concern in patients with prior primary malignancies treated with alkylating agents or topoisomerase II inhibitors. These can also be referred to as therapy-related leukemia. Therapy-related leukemia most commonly results in myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myeloid leukemia. The alkylating agent can cause chromosomal aberrations typically manifest as deletions in chromosome 11 or loss of part of complete loss of chromosomes 5 and 7. Conversely, acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has been described following maintenance therapy with immunomodulatory (IMiD) drugs pomalidomide, thalidomide, and lenalidomide. We present a case of a 71-year-old man with a history of multiple myeloma (MM) maintained on lenalidomide after stem cell transplant who presented with treatment-associated ALL. At time of leukemic presentation, chromosomal analysis showed a near-triploid clone consistent with masked double low hyplodiploidy which is associated with a poor prognosis. The patient had a deletion of the long arm of chromosome 5 which has been described in prior case reports with ALL secondary to lenalidomide therapy. There are explicit mechanisms in the literature, which have been attributed to development of ALL after exposure to thalidomide or lenalidomide. At time of submission, there are 20 cases described in the literature linking ALL to IMiD drugs. We describe a case and review the mechanisms of lenalidomide-associated ALL.

The Role of PARP Inhibitors in Patients with Primary Malignant Central Nervous System Tumors.

OPINION STATEMENT: Primary malignant central nervous (CNS) tumors are a devastating group of diseases with urgent need for improved treatment options. Surgery, radiation, and cytotoxic chemotherapy remain the primary standard treatment modalities, with molecularly targeted therapies having proven efficacy in only small subsets of cases. Poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors, which have had immense success in the treatment of extracranial cancers with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD), are emerging as a potential targeted treatment for various CNS tumors. Although few primary CNS tumors display canonical BRCA gene defects, preclinical evidence suggests that PARP inhibitors may benefit certain CNS tumors with functional HRD or elevated replication stress. In addition, other preclinical studies indicate that PARP inhibitors may synergize with standard therapies used for CNS tumors including radiation and alkylating agents and may prevent or overcome drug resistance. Thus far, initial clinical trials with early-generation PARP inhibitors, typically as monotherapy or in the absence of selective biomarkers, have shown limited efficacy. However, the scientific rationale remains promising, and many clinical trials are ongoing, including investigations of more CNS penetrant or more potent inhibitors and of combination therapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors. Early phase trials are also critically focusing on determining active drug CNS penetration and identifying biomarkers of therapy response. In this review, we will discuss the preclinical evidence supporting use of PARP inhibitors in primary CNS tumors and clinical trial results to date, highlighting ongoing trials and future directions in the field that may yield important findings and potentially impact the treatment of these devastating malignancies in the coming years.

The clinical characteristics and treatment of ovarian malignant mesoderm mixed tumor: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian malignant mesoderm mixed tumor (OMMMT) is a rare clinical entity. To provide reference for the treatment and prognosis of OMMMT, we analyzed the clinical features, pathology and molecular biology characteristic of published cases. METHODS: The English and Chinese reported cases of OMMMT were selected from PubMed, Clinical Trials.gov and CNKI database from 2000 to December 15th, 2021 following the PRISMA guidelines. RESULTS: A total of 63 literatures including 199 OMMMT cases were included. The average age of patients at diagnosis was 56.46 years, the highest incidence age was 60-65 years, and 82% of them were menopausal women. Most patients were diagnosed in FIGO III stage (59.64%). The most common symptom of OMMMT was abdominal pain (60.5%). 61.6% of patients were accompanied by ascites, while ascites was not associated with metastatic tumor and local recurrence. The CA125 of 88.68% patients increased. The most common reported carcinomatous component and sarcomatous component were serous adenocarcinoma (44.96%) and chondrosarcoma (24.81%), respectively. Initial treatment included surgery (94.97%) and taxanes-based (55.10%) or platinum-based (85.71%) chemotherapy regimens. The median survival time of patients was 20 months. Heterologous sarcoma component did not shorten life expectancy. The optimal ovarian tumor cell debulking surgery (OOTCDS), radiotherapy and chemotherapy could significantly prolong the median survival time of patients. Furthermore, platinum drugs could significantly prolong the survival time after comparing various chemotherapy schemes. Besides, the combination of platinum and taxanes was therapeutically superior to the combination of platinum and biological alkylating agents. CONCLUSION: The OOTCDS and platinum-based chemotherapy regimen can improve the prognosis of OMMMT. Targeted therapy might become a new research direction in the future. Since the elderly patients are the majority, the toxicity of new drugs on the elderly patients is more noteworthy.

Polymeric and small molecule-conjugates of temozolomide as improved therapeutic agents for glioblastoma multiforme.

Temozolomide (TMZ), an imidazotetrazine, is a second-generation DNA alkylating agent used as a first-line treatment of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM). It was approved by FDA in 2005 and declared a blockbuster drug in 2008. Although TMZ has shown 100% oral bioavailability and crosses the blood-brain barrier effectively, however it suffers from limitations such as a short half-life (∼1.8 h), rapid metabolism, and lesser accumulation in the brain (∼10-20%). Additionally, development of chemoresistance has been associated with its use. Since it is a potential chemotherapeutic agent with an unmet medical need, advanced delivery strategies have been explored to overcome the associated limitations of TMZ. Nanocarriers including liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), nanostructure lipid carriers (NLCs), and polymeric nanoparticles have demonstrated their ability to improve its circulation time, stability, tissue-specific accumulation, sustained release, and cellular uptake. Because of the appreciable water solubility of TMZ (∼5 mg/mL), the physical loading of TMZ in these nanocarriers is always challenging. Alternatively, the conjugation approach, wherein TMZ has been conjugated to polymers or small molecules, has been explored with improved outcomes in vitro and in vivo. This review emphasized the practical evidence of the conjugation strategy to improve the therapeutic potential of TMZ in the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme.

A Selective Alkylating Agent for CTG Repeats in Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1.

Disease intervention at the DNA level generally has been avoided because of off-target effects. Recent advances in genome editing technologies using CRISPR-Cas9 have opened a new era in DNA-targeted therapeutic approaches. However, delivery of such systems remains a major challenge. Here, we report a selective DNA-modifying small molecule that targets a disease-specific structure and mismatches involved in myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1). This ligand alkylates T-T mismatch-containing hairpins formed in the expanded CTG repeats (d(CTG)exp) in DM1. Ligand alkylation of d(CTG)exp inhibits the transcription of d(CAG·CTG)exp, thereby reducing the level of the toxic r(CUG)exp transcript. The bioactivity of the ligand also included a reduction in DM1 pathological features such as disease foci formation and misregulation of pre-mRNA splicing in DM1 model cells. Furthermore, the CTG-alkylating ligand may change the d(CAG·CTG)exp repeat length dynamics in DM1 patient cells. Our strategy of linking an alkylating moiety to a DNA mismatch-selective small molecule may be generally applicable to other repeat expansion diseases such as Huntington's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Alkylating Agents, the Road Less Traversed, Changing Anticancer Therapy.

Cancer is considered one of the gruelling challenges and poses a grave health hazard across the globe. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), new cancer cases increased to 18.1 million in 2018, with 9.6 million deaths, bringing the global cancer rate to 23.6 million by 2030. In 1942, the discovery of nitrogen mustard as an alkylating agent was a tremendous breakthrough in cancer chemotherapy. It acts by binding to the DNA, and creating cross linkages between the two strands, leading to halt of DNA replication and eventual cell death. Nitrogen lone pairs of 'nitrogen mustard' produce an intermediate 'aziridinium ion' at the molecular level, which is very reactive towards DNA of tumour cells, resulting in multiple side effects with therapeutic consequences. Owing to its high reactivity and peripheral cytotoxicity, several improvements have been made with structural modifications for the past 75 years to enhance its efficacy and improve the direct transport of drugs to the tumour cells. Alkylating agents were among the first non-hormonal substances proven to be active against malignant cells and also the most valuable cytotoxic therapies available for the treatment of leukaemia and lymphoma patients. This review focus on the versatile use of alkylating agents and the Structure Activity Relationship (SAR) of each class of these compounds. This could provide an understanding for design and synthesis of new alkylating agents having enhanced target specificity and adequate bioavailability.

Treatment patterns and outcomes among nontransplant newly diagnosed multiple myeloma patients in Spain.

Aim: To describe treatment patterns and outcomes in nontransplant newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) patients in Spain. Methods: This retrospective study included two cohorts of NDMM patients diagnosed between 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2013 and 1 April 2016 to 31 March 2017. Results: Among 113 patients, proteasome inhibitor (PI) + alkylator combinations (49%) and PI-based regimens without an alkylator (30%) were the most common first-line (1L) therapies. Use of PI + immunomodulatory drug-based regimens increased between the cohorts; PI-based regimens without an alkylator/immunomodulatory drug decreased. Use of 1L oral regimens was low but increased over time; use of maintenance therapy was low across both periods. Median 1L duration of treatment was 6.9 months. Conclusion: Short 1L duration of treatment and low use of 1L oral regimens and maintenance therapy highlight unmet needs in NDMM.

Lay abstract This study describes treatment patterns and outcomes in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (NDMM) patients in Spain who were not candidates for transplant. The study looked at two patient groups: patients diagnosed between 1 January 2012 and 31 December 2013 and those diagnosed between 1 April 2016 and 31 March 2017. Among the 113 patients considered, the most common first-line therapies were proteasome inhibitor (PI) + alkylator combinations (49%) and PI-based regimens without an alkylator (30%). We saw increased use of PI with immunomodulators (which arm the immune system to battle disease) and decreased use of PI-based regimens without an alkylator or immunomodulator. First-line use of oral regimens was low but increased over time. The median length of first-line treatment for both groups combined was 6.9 months. Finding low use of first-line oral regimens and maintenance therapy and a short duration of first-line treatment, our study highlights the unmet needs that exist in NDMM patients who are not transplant candidates in Spain.