Rapid determination of 5-fluorouracil in plasma using capillary electrophoresis

Antineoplastic drugs and their analysis: a state of the art review

We provide an overview of the analytical methods available for the quantification of antineoplastic drugs in pharmaceutical formulations, biological and environmental samples.

In vivo distribution of 5-Fluorouracil after peritumoral implantation using a biodegradable micro-device in tumor-bearing mice

A novel implantable micro-device was used for delivery of 5-Fluorouracil (5-Fu), which was often used in the treatment of various human malignancies. The biodegradable poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid (PLGA) was used as material. The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficiency of delivery of 5-Fu to the tumor via this delivery system. The distribution characters of the 5-Fu in tumor, plasma, peritumoral tissue, liver and kidney were compared after peritumoral implantation of micro-device and intraperitoneal injection of solution. After administration of micro-device, the 5-Fu was absorbed into the tumor on Day 1, and Cmax (4.14 μg/g) was reached on Day 6. The half life for the elimination was 4.48 d and the AUC was 46.78 μg × d/g. Similar pharmacokinetic behaviors were observed in plasma, peritumoral tissue, kidney and liver, while the Cmax and the AUC of plasma and these tissues were lower than those of tumor. When administered the solution, 5-Fu was rapidly absorbed into plasma, liver, kidney, spleen and tumor, and rapidly cleared from these tissues after 2 or 4 h. And the AUC in tumor of 5-Fu solution was significantly lower than that of the micro-device. These results indicated that 5-Fu loaded biodegradable micro-device offered a relatively high concentration and long-term delivery of the drug to the tumor site.

Analysis of anticancer drugs: a review

In the last decades, the number of patients receiving chemotherapy has considerably increased. Given the toxicity of cytotoxic agents to humans (not only for patients but also for healthcare professionals), the development of reliable analytical methods to analyse these compounds became necessary. From the discovery of new substances to patient administration, all pharmaceutical fields are concerned with the analysis of cytotoxic drugs. In this review, the use of methods to analyse cytotoxic agents in various matrices, such as pharmaceutical formulations and biological and environmental samples, is discussed. Thus, an overview of reported analytical methods for the determination of the most commonly used anticancer drugs is given.