Patent ID: 8097632

Claim:
A method of therapeutically treating cancer in a patient diagnosed with cancer, wherein the cancer is basal cell carcinoma, medulloblastoma, squamous cell carcinoma, carcinosarcoma, adenocystic carcinoma, epidermoid carcinoma, nasopharyngeal carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma, a papilloma, an epidermoidoma, a glioma, meningioma, a neuroectodermal tumor, an ependymoma, pineoblastoma, hemangioma, pancreatic cancer, adenocarcinoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, glioblastoma, sarcoma, thyroid carcinoma, bone cancer, lung cancer, chondrosarcoma, breast cancer, urogenital cancer, kidney cancer, bladder cancer, ureter cancer, prostate cancer, adrenal cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, stomach cancer, intestinal cancer, keratoacanthoma, or malignant hepatoma, comprising administering to the patient a steroidal alkaloid represented in general Formula II or a homo-derivative thereof: wherein, as valence and stability permit, R 2 , R 3 , R 4 , and R 5 , represent one or more substitutions to the ring to which each is attached, for each occurrence, independently represent hydrogen, halogens, alkyls, alkenyls, alkynyls, aryls, hydroxyl, ═O, ═S, alkoxyl, silyloxy, amino, nitro, thiol, amines, imines, amides, phosphoryls, phosphonates, phosphines, carbonyls, carboxyls, carboxamides, anhydrides, silyls, ethers, thioethers, alkylsulfonyls, arylsulfonyls, selenoethers, ketones, aldehydes, esters, sugar, carbamate, carbonate, or —(CH 2 ) m —R 8 ; R 6 , R 7 , and R′ 7 , are absent or independently represent halogens, alkyls, alkenyls, alkynyls, aryls, hydroxyl, ═O, ═S, alkoxyl, silyloxy, amino, nitro, thiol, amines, imines, amides, phosphoryls, phosphonates, phosphines, carbonyls, carboxyls, carboxamides, anhydrides, silyls, ethers, thioethers, alkylsulfonyls, arylsulfonyls, selenoethers, ketones, aldehydes, esters, or —(CH 2 ) m —R 8 , or R 6 and R 7 , or R 7 and R′ 7 , taken together form a ring or polycyclic ring, with the proviso that at least one of R 6 , R 7 , or R′ 7 is present and includes a primary or secondary amine; R 8 represents an aryl, a cycloalkyl, a cycloalkenyl, a heterocycle, or a polycycle; and m is an integer in the range 0 to 8 inclusive; wherein the bonds with a dotted line optionally and independently represent a single or double bond, and wherein R 5 is absent when the carbon to which it is connected is part of a double bond; or a salt thereof.