S. Carter, Frank M. Schabel, Lawrence E. Broder
1972
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0
Influential Citations
163
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Quality indicators
Journal
Advances in cancer research
Abstract
Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on nitrosoureas and its use in cancer treatment. Nitrosoureas is one of the exciting groups of compounds to arise out of the Chemotherapy Program of the National Cancer Institute. This functions to a major degree as a drug development program. Nitrosoureas is in various stages of clinical trials and 1, 3-bis (2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) (NSC 409962) has the most extensive trial. An essential part of the Chemotherapy Program's search for new antitumor agents has been large-scale empirical screening. Thus, the historical background, the chemistry of the compound and its biochemistry, and the mechanism of its action is essential and all these are rightly mentioned in the chapter. BCNU has a wide range of effectiveness against a variety of experimental tumors. It has most commonly been employed in mouse leukemia L1210 line in activity screening and, more specifically, to analyze the effectiveness of BCNU against tumor cells implanted intracerebrally. The chapter includes animal toxicology, animal tumor data, their pharmacology, and the clinical studies conducted regarding toxicity and efficacy. It reviews the extensive data available on BCNU and the other nitrosoureas and elucidates some of the principles that govern the drug development functions of the Chemotherapy Program.