https://www.thelancet.com/pdfs/journals/lancet/PIIS0140-6736(00)04046-0.pdf

Inflammation and cancer: back to Virchow?

Background Bortezomib, a boronic acid dipeptide, is a novel proteasome inhibitor that has been shown in preclinical and phase 1 studies to have antimyeloma activity. Methods In this multicenter, open-label, nonrandomized, phase 2 trial, we enrolled 202 patients with relapsed myeloma that was refractory to the therapy they had received most recently. Patients received 1.3 mg of bortezomib per square meter of body-surface area twice weekly for 2 weeks, followed by 1 week without treatment, for up to eight cycles (24 weeks). In patients with a suboptimal response, oral dexamethasone (20 mg daily, on the day of and the day after bortezomib administration) was added to the regimen. The response was evaluated according to the criteria of the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation and confirmed by an independent review committee. Results Of 193 patients who could be evaluated, 92 percent had been treated with three or more of the major classes of agents for myeloma, and in 91 percent, the myeloma wa...

https://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJMoa030288

A phase 2 study of bortezomib in relapsed, refractory myeloma.

Given the high attrition rates, substantial costs and slow pace of new drug discovery and development, repurposing of 'old' drugs to treat both common and rare diseases is increasingly becoming an attractive proposition because it involves the use of de-risked compounds, with potentially lower overall development costs and shorter development timelines. Various data-driven and experimental approaches have been suggested for the identification of repurposable drug candidates; however, there are also major technological and regulatory challenges that need to be addressed. In this Review, we present approaches used for drug repurposing (also known as drug repositioning), discuss the challenges faced by the repurposing community and recommend innovative ways by which these challenges could be addressed to help realize the full potential of drug repurposing.

Drug repurposing: progress, challenges and recommendations

Multiple myeloma (MM) is an incurable plasma cell dyscrasia that remains fatal. Despite efforts over the past 3 to 4 decades, the median survival of patients with MM does not exceed 3 to 4 years. Although patients receiving combination chemotherapy have higher response rates compared with those receiving oral melphalan and prednisolone, they have no survival advantage. High-dose chemotherapy followed by autologous stem cell transplantation has documented benefit over conventional treatment and is currently the accepted mode of treatment for symptomatic MM. Allogeneic transplantation is associated with high complete remission rates, but at the cost of high therapy-related mortality. Maintenance treatment with interferon-a shows benefit, albeit in a small fraction of MM patients. The use of bisphosphonates in patients with MM has clearly demonstrated benefit and reduced morbidity associated with bone disease. All of these measures have improved remission rates and survival, but all patients with MM ultimately relapse and succumb to their disease. Novel therapeutic strategies are therefore required to improve outcome of MM patients. The responses noted to thalidomide in MM are encouraging. Immune-based strategies, including both adoptive immunotherapy and vaccinations, are currently being investigated in the preclinical and clinical setting, with the goal of enhancing autologous and allogeneic anti-MM immunity for therapeutic applications.

Multiple myeloma

Improved survival in multiple myeloma and the impact of novel therapies

Background Patients with myeloma who relapse after high-dose chemotherapy have few therapeutic options. Since increased bone marrow vascularity imparts a poor prognosis in myeloma, we evaluated the efficacy of thalidomide, which has antiangiogenic properties, in patients with refractory disease. Methods Eighty-four previously treated patients with refractory myeloma (76 with a relapse after high-dose chemotherapy) received oral thalidomide as a single agent for a median of 80 days (range, 2 to 465). The starting dose was 200 mg daily, and the dose was increased by 200 mg every two weeks until it reached 800 mg per day. Response was assessed on the basis of a reduction of the myeloma protein in serum or Bence Jones protein in urine that lasted for at least six weeks. Results The serum or urine levels of paraprotein were reduced by at least 90 percent in eight patients (two had a complete remission), at least 75 percent in six patients, at least 50 percent in seven patients, and at least 25 percent in six p...

https://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJM199911183412102

J Zeddis

Papers

Antitumor activity of thalidomide in refractory multiple myeloma.