Chlorambucil
Brand name:- Leukeran 2,5 mg tab.
Chlorambucil is a very slow acting alkylating agent, especially active on lymphoid tissue: Myeloid tissue is largely spared. It is the drug of choice for long- trem maintenance therapy for chronic lymphatic leukaemia; non - Hodgkin lymphoma and few solid tumors also resolve. It has some immunosuppressant property.
Pharmacodynamic:-
Chlorambucil is an antineoplastic in the class of alkylating agents that is used to treat various forms of cancer. Alkylating agents are so named because of their ability to add alkyl groups to many electronegative groups under conditions present in cells. They stop tumor growth by cross-linking guanine bases in DNA double-helix strands - directly attacking DNA. This makes the strands unable to uncoil and separate. As this is necessary in DNA replication, the cells can no longer divide. In addition, these drugs add methyl or other alkyl groups onto molecules where they do not belong which in turn inhibits their correct utilization by base pairing and causes a miscoding of DNA. Alkylating agents are cell cycle-nonspecific. Alkylating agents work by three different mechanisms all of which achieve the same end result - disruption of DNA function and cell death.
Mechanics of action:-
Alkylating agents work by three different mechanisms: 1) attachment of alkyl groups to DNA bases, resulting in the DNA being fragmented by repair enzymes in their attempts to replace the alkylated bases, preventing DNA synthesis and RNA transcription from the affected DNA, 2) DNA damage via the formation of cross-links (bonds between atoms in the DNA) which prevents DNA from being separated for synthesis or transcription, and 3) the induction of mispairing of the nucleotides leading to mutations.
Used:-
used to treat certain types of cancer (such as leukemia, lymphoma). Chlorambucil belongs to a class of drugs known as alkylating agents. It works by slowing or stopping the growth of cancer cells.
side effects:-
Rarely, nausea, vomiting, stomach upset, or diarrhea may occur. In some cases, your doctor may prescribe medication to prevent or relieve nausea and vomiting.
Dose:-
4-10mg (0.1- 0.2 mg/kg ) daily for 3-6weeks,then 2 mg daily for maintenance. As directed by your doctor.
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