Table 1.
Nanoparticle formulations clinically approved for treatment of solid tumors. Indications, survival benefit and reduction in adverse effects (adapted and updated from Ref1).
| Drug | Indication | Survival benefit | Benefit on adverse effects |
|---|---|---|---|
| Doxil/Caelyx (Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin) | HIV-related Kaposi’s sarcoma | No statistically significant increase in overall survival (23 weeks) versus doxorubicin, bleomycin and vincristine treatment (22.3 weeks) for HIV-related Kaposi’s sarcoma. 25 | Statistically significant decrease in nausea/vomiting, alopecia and peripheral neuropathy. 25 |
| Metastatic ovarian cancer | Statistically significant increase in overall survival (108 weeks, P = 0.008) versus topotecan treatment (71.1 weeks) for platinum-sensitive patients with ovarian cancer. 26 | Statistically significant decrease in neutropenia, anemia, thrompocytopenia, leukopenia and alopecia. 26 | |
| Metastatic breast cancer | No statistically significant change in overall survival (84 weeks) versus conventional doxorubicin (88 weeks) for first-line breast cancer patients.27 | Statistically significant decrease in cardiotoxicity, alopecia, nausea/vomiting, and neutropenia. 27 | |
| DaunoXome (liposomal daunorubicin) | HIV-related Kaposi’s sarcoma | No statistically significant change in overall survival (52.7 weeks) versus doxorubicin, bleomycin and vincristine treatment (48.9 weeks). 28 | Statistically significant decrease in alopecia and neuropathy. 28 |
| Myocet (liposomal doxorubicin) | Metastatic breast cancer | No statistically significant change in overall survival of Myocet and cyclophosphamide (49 months) versus doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide (48 months). 29 | Statistically significant decrease in cardiotoxicity and grade 4 neutropenia. 29 |
| Abraxane (albumin-bound paclitaxel) | Metastatic breast cancer | Statistically significant increase in overall survival (56.4 weeks, P = 0.024) versus polyethylated castor oil-based paclitaxel treatment (46.7 weeks) for second-line patients. 30 | Statistically significant decrease in neutropenia. No hypersensitivity reactions. 30 |
| Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma | Statistically significant increase in overall survival (8.5 months, P <0.001) of Abraxane plus gemcitabine versus gemcitabine alone (6.7 months). 31 | Proportion of patients with serious adverse events was similar in the two treatment groups. 31 | |
| Lipusu (liposomal paclitaxel) | Breast and non- small-cell lung cancer | No statistically significant difference in efficacy vs conventional paclitaxel. 32,33 | Reduced hypersensitivity reactions. 32,33 |
| Genexol-PM (micelle of paclitaxel) | Metastatic breast cancer | Overall response rate 58.5% in a Phase II trial. 34 | Reduced hypersensitivity reactions. 34 |
| MM-398 (Liposomal formulation of irinotecan) | Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma | Statistically significant increase in overall survival (6.1 months, P<0.001)) with MM-398 plus 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin (5-FU/LV) versus 5-FU/LV (4.2 months). 35 | Most frequent adverse effects compared to 5-FU/LV include neutropenia, fatigue, diarrhea and vomiting. 35 |
| PICN (Paclitaxel injection concentrate for nanodispersion) | Metastatic breast cancer | Not statistically significant difference in objective response rate compared to Abraxane. 36 | No hypersensitivity reactions. 36 |