In this article, we will discuss Amsacrine (Use). So, let’s get started.
Use
Amsacrine is a cytotoxic drug used in the treatment of malignant disease. Its anti-
tumour activity was first described in 1974 (Cain & Atwell, 1974), and the drug entered
clinical trials in 1976 (Hornedo & Van Echo, 1985; Louie & Issell, 1985). It is an
inhibitor of DNA topoisomerase II (Malonne & Atassi, 1997). The use of amsacrine is limited almost exclusively to the treatment of leukaemia in adults and children, in which it has been included in a number of combination chemotherapy regimens at cumulative doses of 450–600 mg/m2 (Arlin et al., 1991; Berman, 1992). In phase II trials in patients with a variety of solid tumours, amsacrine showed
little or no activity at typical doses of 90–150 mg/m2, except in Hodgkin disease (Louie & Issell, 1985).
Amsacrine is formulated as two sterile liquids that are combined before intravenous administration, diluted in 500 mL dextrose and typically infused over 30–90 min (Editions du Vidal, 1998; Thomas, 1998).