Dendrimers in Chemotherapy

Introduction

Cancer is one of the leading causes of death. A person who is diagnosed to undergo in a therapy was infected their lung, breast, prostate, colorectal, or ovarian (which is only seen in women). There are varieties of treating a cancer such as surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy. All of the treatment’s modality is based on the type, location, dissemination of cancer, and upon the examination or assessment of the doctor towards the patient.

Despite from the improvement and variety of technologies used in treating the cancers, there is also a number of therapeutic agents that effects severely on the person who takes medication. Because of the side effects, there is a limitation on the usefulness of the chemotherapeutic agents. Studies show that the therapeutic developments on gene therapy or immunotherapy have fewer side effects than of the chemotherapy.

Dendrimers in Chemotherapy

The aim of the study is to measure the effectiveness of the chemotherapeutic agents when it is used together with the dendrimers. Today, there is a present invention that is related to the therapeutic and diagnostic dendrimers. The invention that is directed to the dendrimer has a multifunctional compositions and systems for use in disease diagnosis as chemotherapeutic agent. Dendriments compositions and systems is comprised with ones or more components for targeting, imaging, sensing, and providing a therapeutic or diagnostic material and monitoring the response to therapy of a cell or tissues that was infected by cancer (Baker, et al. Inventors, 2009).

Dendrimer is comprised with a partially Acetylated Generation 5 (G5) Polyamideamine (PAMAM), Polypropylamine (POPAM), or PAMAM-POMAM dendrimer. The said dendrimer as chemotherapeutic agent is ideally comprised of two or more reactive sites for conjugation of a functional group.

The generation of dendrimers having with different core molecules can be synthesized with their chemiluminescence (CL) was measured under the alkaline conditions (Agawa, et al., 2008). All dendrimers showed a strong CL and the intensities are based on the core molecules which mean that there is a strong impact of therapeutic agent on the cancer cells, but with side effects that still depend on the body immunity of the patient.

Methodology: Treatment Schemes

Chemotherapeutic drugs in the present generation are administered in a number of strategies. Chemotherapy is given with a intention in aiming to prolong the life of the patient or otherwise, prevent some occurring symptoms. The dendrimers, as discussed earlier is a combination of the branching structure of the therapeutic agents that act as one once taken.

The combined modality in chemotherapy is used with drugs with other cancer treatments. This combination of chemotherapeutic agents is similar practice that involves the treatment in patient with number of different drugs simultaneously. The mechanism and side effects may differ and the biggest advantage of the combined chemotherapeutic agents is to minimize the chances of resistance in developing to any one agent. The chemotherapeutic agents and regimens always required the patient to undergo a series of examination upon the treatment simulation. The performance status is often measured in the amount of therapy receive by the patient.

Analysis on Chemotherapy Dosage

If the dose is too low, it will be ineffective against the cancer and if it is too much, the toxicity or the side effects will be uncontrollable to the patient. In most cases, the dosages are proposed to be adjusted with a measurement of the blood volume. Chemotherapy is delivered intravenously into the organs that were affected by the cancer cells.

Every patient and health care specialists should understand that every approach on the chemotherapy is based on the stage of the cancer and the harmful and lethal toxicity limits the ability of the chemotherapy. Some cancer, such as tumors can be destroyed by sufficiently high doses of chemotherapeutic agents but these high doses cannot be given because they would be fatal to the patient.

The possible side-effects range from different physical exhaustion. The current chemotherapeutic techniques affects fast the division cells of the human body. The most common effects are pain, nausea, diarrhea or constipation, anemia, hair loss, depression, dehydration, weight loss, and dry mouth. The high dosage might worsen the feeling of the patient that might lead to hemorrhage or psychosocial distress and anxiety. The organs also react in the dosages and in the chemotherapeutic sessions as it reaches the heart, liver, kidney, and inner ear.

Works Consulted:

Agawa, H., et al., (2008) Chemiluminescence Change of Polyphenol Dendrimers with Different Core Molecules, Org Lett, 10(22) [Online] Available at: http://www.chemotherapy.researchtoday.net/archive/5/11/8818.htm [Accessed 04 Dec 2009]

Baker, J., Thomas, T., Majoros, I., Cao, Z., and Kukowska-Latallo, J., (Inventors) (2009) Dendrimer Based Compositions and Methods of Using the Same [Online] Available at: http://www.faqs.org/patents/app/20090104119 [Accessed 04 Dec 2009].

Chemotherapy [Online] Available at: http://chemotherapy.researchtoday.net/about-chemotherapy.htm [Accessed 04 Dec 2009]

Functionalized Dendrimer-Encapsulated and Dendrimer-Stabilized Nanoparticles Description/Claims, (2009) [Online] Available at: http://www.freshpatents.com/-dt20090820ptan20090208580.php [Accessed 04 Dec 2009]