Researchers at Michigan State University have discovered an already approved drug that can reduce the side effects of cisplatin, a widely used cancer treatment. Research published Journal of Clinical Research.
Since its discovery by scientists at the University of Michigan in 1965, cisplatin has become the gold standard against which all cancer treatments are compared. Cisplatin is currently used to treat testicular, ovarian, bladder, lung, stomach, and head and neck cancers. Although the drug has proven to be an effective chemotherapy drug, the side effects of treatment (including pain in the extremities and kidney failure) can be debilitating and lead to discontinuation of treatment. Currently, there are no drugs that reduce these side effects.
The authors found that istradiphylline, a drug currently approved to treat Parkinson’s disease, can reduce the side effects of cisplatin without affecting its ability to fight cancer.
The exact interaction between istradefillin and cisplatin has not yet been determined. Currently, istradiphylline is known to block the action of adenosine secreted in large quantities by cancer cells destroyed by cisplatin.
While Istradifillin has been shown to be safe in humans, current experiments demonstrating its effectiveness in combating the side effects of cisplatin have only been done in animal models. It is hoped that once the human clinical trial is over, patients will be able to continue taking cisplatin without side effects or loss of drug efficacy.