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Cancer multidrug resistance (MDR): a major impediment to effective chemotherapy

Mohd Fahad Ullah1

  • 1Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of life Sciences, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India. f.ullah@rediffmail.com

Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention : APJCP
|April 29, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Multidrug resistance (MDR) in cancer hinders chemotherapy. This review explores MDR mechanisms and novel strategies, highlighting natural products as potential treatments with fewer side effects.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Pharmacology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Multidrug resistance (MDR) poses a significant obstacle to successful cancer chemotherapy.
  • Cancer cells develop MDR through complex cellular and non-cellular mechanisms to evade drug cytotoxicity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the fundamental mechanisms driving MDR in cancer cells.
  • To explore novel strategies for inhibiting, circumventing, or reversing MDR.
  • To highlight the potential of natural products as anti-MDR agents.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of fundamental MDR mechanisms.
  • Analysis of emerging approaches to combat MDR.
  • Evaluation of natural products for MDR modulation.

Main Results:

  • MDR involves diverse mechanisms enabling cancer cell survival against various drugs.
  • Novel strategies are being developed to overcome MDR.
  • Natural products show promise as safe and effective MDR modulators.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding MDR mechanisms is crucial for developing effective cancer therapies.
  • Natural products represent a promising avenue for a new generation of MDR modulators with potentially fewer side effects.

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