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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2024 Mar 1.
Published in final edited form as: Wiley Interdiscip Rev Nanomed Nanobiotechnol. 2022 Aug 18;15(2):e1846. doi: 10.1002/wnan.1846

TABLE 4.

Doxorubicin formulations

Formulations Manufacturer Composition/Strength Regulatory status
Adriamycin PFS (Doxorubicin HCl Injection, USP; 2 mg/ml sterile, isotonic solution)
Adriamycin RDF (Powder for Injection; doxorubicin hydrochloride for injection, USP; Sterile red-orange lyophilized powder)
Pharmacia & Upjohn S.p.A (Now Pfizer) Each ml contains doxorubicin HCI 2 mg, USP, and the following inactive ingredients: sodium chloride 0.9% and water for injection q.s. Hydrochloric acid is used to adjust the pH to a target pH of 3.0. Received FDA approval in July 1993
Discontinued in the US
Nanoformulations
Doxil®
Caelyx® (PEGylated liposomes)
Janssen Pharmaceuticals
Janssen-Cilag International NV
2 mg/ml of doxorubicin, 3.19 mg/ml of N-(carbonyl-methoxypolyethylene glycol 2000)-1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine sodium salt (DSPE-PEG 2000), 9.58 mg/ml of fully hydrogenated soy phosphatidylcholine (HSPC), and 3.19 mg/ml of cholesterol.
Mean particle size: 87.3 ± 8.5 nm
FDA approval of Doxil® in 1995
EMEA approval of Caelyx® in 1996
MYOCET (non-PEGylated liposomes) Zeneus Teva BV Single lamellar liposomes (approximately 150 nm) composed of egg phosphatidylcholine: cholesterol (55:45 mole percent) containing 300 mM citrate at pH 4.5.
Encapsulation efficiency >95%
After encapsulation of doxorubicin, the drug-to-lipid ratio of Myocet is approximately 0.25:1 (wt:wt) and the pH is 6.5–8.5.
Encapsulation is achieved via an active loading process, which utilizes an acidic (pH 4.5) proton concentration gradient. The internal complex is a flexible assembly of doxorubicin monomers stacked into fibers that are cross-linked by citrate into a hexagonal array with a 35 Å lattice repeat.
Supplied as a three-vial system: doxorubicin HCl, liposomes and buffer, 0.9% (w/v) sodium chloride solution for injection
Myocet was approved in Europe and Canada in 2000 and is currently undergoing a Phase 3 global trial.
LIPODOX (SPIL DXR HCl liposome injection) generic version of Doxil®/Caelyx®) Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Available as 2 mg/ml (20 mg/10 ml and 50 mg/25 ml) Doxorubicin hydrochloride liposome injection. The drug product appears as a translucent, red liposomal dispersion. Due to shortage of Doxil® in 2011, FDA allowed temporary import of Lipo-DOX for the treatment of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC)
FDA approved the generic version of Doxil® in 2013
Lipodox® (second-generation PEGylated liposomal doxorubicin) TTY Biopharm Company Ltd, Taipei, Taiwan Distearoylphosphatidylcholine (DSPC)/PEG-DSPE liposome with a slightly higher phase transition temperature than HSPC, distearoylphosphatidylcholine (DSPC), and cholesterol with a surface coating of PEG. Commercially available in Taiwan since 1998
Thermodox® (thermally sensitive liposomal doxorubicin) Celsion Corporation DPPC, MSPC, and PEG 2000-DSPE (90:10:4 molar ratio) Phase III trial (OPTIMA study) for treatment of nonresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), in conjunction with standardized radiofrequency ablation (sRFA ≥ 45).
TLD1/TaliDox® (glycan targeted liposomal Xdoxorubicin) InnoMedica Comprises of 1,2-distearoyl-snglycero-3-phosphocholine (DSPC), cholesterol, and DSPE-MPEG 2000
Particle size: approximately 60 nm with a PDI < 0.01
Phase I/IIa in Switzerland (NCT03387917) in patients with advanced solid tumors.
InnoMedica has decided to submit the dossier for marketing authorization to Swissmedic in the first half of 2021.
EGFR(V)-EDV-Dox EnGeneIC Ltd. EGFR (vectibix sequence)-targeted EnGeneIC delivery vehicle (EDV) containing doxorubicin. Bacterially derived nanocell packages Doxorubicin, into a 400 nm particle which targets specific cancer cells using bispecific antibodies (BsAb) Phase I ACTRN12609000672257
Phase I NCT02766699