A review of its pharmacological properties and clinical use in cancer chemotherapy. A review of its pharmacological properties and clinical use in cancer chemotherapy.
Comparative trials evaluating vinorelbine in women with advanced breast cancer are few at present.
Myelosuppression is the most frequent cause of vinorelbine treatment delay or dose reduction. Other consequences of vinorelbine therapy are those typically seen with antineoplastic agents, such as diarrhoea, nausea and vomiting, and alopecia. However, these are rarely severe. Early clinical investigations indicate that the antitumour effects of vinorelbine in other malignancies including ovarian carcinoma, lymphoma and head and neck cancer warrant further exploration, as does the efficacy of the drug relative to standard approaches and its possible beneficial effects on quality of life of cancer patients. This semisynthetic vinca alkaloid has a manageable tolerability profile and potential for use in other malignancies and as an oral formulation.