XRP6258-induced gene expression patterns in head and neck cancer carcinoma

Efficacy of cabazitaxel in mouse models of pediatric brain tumors

BACKGROUND

There is an unmet need in the treatment of pediatric brain tumors for chemotherapy that is efficacious, avoids damage to the developing brain, and crosses the blood-brain barrier. These experiments evaluated the efficacy of cabazitaxel in mouse models of pediatric brain tumors.

METHODS

The antitumor activity of cabazitaxel and docetaxel were compared in flank and orthotopic xenograft models of patient-derived atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor (ATRT), medulloblastoma, and central nervous system primitive neuroectodermal tumor (CNS-PNET). Efficacy of cabazitaxel and docetaxel were also assessed in the Smo/Smo spontaneous mouse medulloblastoma tumor model.

RESULTS

This study observed significant tumor growth inhibition in pediatric patient-derived flank xenograft tumor models of ATRT, medulloblastoma, and CNS-PNET after treatment with either cabazitaxel or docetaxel. Cabazitaxel, but not docetaxel, treatment resulted in sustained tumor growth inhibition in the ATRT and medulloblastoma flank xenograft models. Patient-derived orthotopic xenograft models of ATRT, medulloblastoma, and CNS-PNET showed significantly improved survival with treatment of cabazitaxel.

CONCLUSION

These data support further testing of cabazitaxel as a therapy for treating human pediatric brain tumors.

Clinical development of cabazitaxel for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer

Castration resistant prostate cancer has historically been considered chemotherapy insensitive. However, the approval of estramustine phosphate, mitoxantrone, and docetaxel, over the past few decades, has challenged this notion. Despite these advances, until recently, only docetaxel had been shown to improve survival in patients with castration-resistant disease, and there has been no standard treatment options available for men with disease progression on docetaxel. In the last year, cabazitaxel, a novel taxane with decreased affinity for ATP-dependent drug efflux pump P-glycoprotein, became the first cytotoxic agent to demonstrate an improvement in survival in men with docetaxel-refractory disease, and has received regulatory approval for treatment in this setting. In this review, we examine the clinical development of cabazitaxel for the treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer, as well as rationale and direction of future therapeutic investigation.