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Drug transporters as targets for cancer chemotherapy

Takeo Nakanishi1

  • 1The Program in Experimental Therapeutics, Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of Maryland at Baltimore, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. tnakanishi@som.umaryland.edu

Cancer Genomics & Proteomics
|September 20, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Drug transporters are crucial for cell survival and drug efficacy. Targeting these transporters in cancer cells offers new strategies for improved anticancer drug delivery and diagnostics.

Area of Science:

  • Pharmacology and molecular biology
  • Cancer biology and therapeutics

Background:

  • Transporter proteins regulate nutrient uptake and xenobiotic efflux, essential for cell survival.
  • Drug transporters specifically influence the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of pharmaceuticals.
  • Interactions between drug transporters and anticancer agents are increasingly recognized.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the role of drug transporters in tumor adaptation and growth.
  • To explore the potential of drug transporters as therapeutic targets in cancer therapy.
  • To highlight how understanding transporter functions can optimize anticancer drug delivery and diagnostics.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of studies on drug transporters and anticancer agents.
  • Analysis of differential transporter expression in cancer versus normal tissues.
  • Synthesis of information on transporter-mediated drug delivery and diagnostic applications.

Main Results:

  • Drug transporters are implicated in the adaptation and growth of tumors.
  • Differential up-regulation of transporters in cancer cells suggests potential as therapeutic targets.
  • Exploiting transporter functions can enhance drug delivery to target tissues and improve oral bioavailability.
  • Transporter expression patterns may serve as diagnostic markers for cancer therapy.

Conclusions:

  • Drug transporters are critical players in cancer progression and drug response.
  • Targeting drug transporters presents a promising strategy for novel cancer therapies.
  • Understanding transporter roles can lead to personalized medicine approaches in oncology.

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