Intramedullary cisplatin chemotherapy: experience in four dogs with osteosarcoma

What do we know about canine osteosarcoma treatment? Review

Osteosarcoma (OSA) is the most common type of bone tumors in dogs, which has high metastasis ability. 80 % of dogs with OSA die due to lung metastasis. As a result its treatment is a challenge for veterinary practitioners. The authors discuss the etiology, pathogenesis and the possible risk factors of OSA. The article focuses on literature review and the study of recent advances in OSA treatment. The authors describe therapies which have significantly prolonged the lives of dogs, as well as those that have proven to be ineffective. Advantages and disadvantages of limb amputation and limb-sparing surgery have been described. Authors present also the results of both single agent’s therapies with the most commonly used drugs as cisplatin, carboplatin and doxorubicin and compare them to the results obtained using combined chemotherapy. The use of nanotechnology as a new approach in OSA treatment in order to avoid multidrug resistance and reduce negative side effects of cytostatic drugs is presented. The main reasons of the therapies failure are also provided in this article.

Update on the biology and management of canine osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma (OSA) is the most common primary bone tumor diagnosed in dogs. Our understanding of the risk factors and genetic changes in canine OSA patients is growing, but specific, innovative therapeutic strategies are slow in coming. Appendicular skeletal osteosarcoma, the most frequent form of this disease, is typically seen in large to giant breeds, with males being overrepresented in most reports. Axial skeletal OSA is less common than appendicular OSA, but the biologic behavior of the disease is equally aggressive in all skeletal sites except for the mandible. Though the current standard of care for dogs with osteosarcoma remains surgical resection of the affected site, followed by chemotherapy with either a platinum- (cisplatin or carboplatin) or doxorubicin-based protocol, novel therapies are being actively investigated.

Carboplatin and doxorubicin combination chemotherapy for the treatment of appendicular osteosarcoma in the dog

Twenty-four client-owned dogs with histologically diagnosed appendicular osteosarcoma (OSA) and no evidence of gross metastatic disease were treated with amputation or limb salvage followed by combination chemotherapy consisting of carboplatin (175mg/ m2 IV, day 1) and doxorubicin (15 mg/m2 IV, day 2) given on a 21-day cycle for a maximum of 4 cycles. Hematologic and gastrointestinal adverse effects were graded according to National Cancer Institute guidelines. Thoracic radiographs were obtained before the 3rd chemotherapy cycle and then every 2 months. Median disease-free interval was 195 days (95% confidence interval 111-228 days) and median survival was 235 days (95% confidence interval 150-283 days). Two patients required dose reductions: 1 for grade 3 thrombocytopenia and 1 for grade 3 adverse gastrointestinal effects. Patients with a longer duration of clinical signs before definitive diagnosis and surgery (greater than 30 days) were more likely to develop progressive disease and to die or be euthanized because of progressive disease on any day; hazard ratios were 3.0 (P = .02) and 3.7 (P .02), respectively. In conclusion, although this combination chemotherapy protocol was well tolerated, it did not provide any improvement over historical single-agent protocols.

Estudo in vivo de um sistema de liberação de drogas constituído por hidroxiapatita e cisplatina

Um sistema de liberação constituído por hidroxiapatita e cisplatina foi testado em ratos para avaliação da liberação local e sistêmica do antineoplásico cisplatina. Os animais que receberam os implantes com a droga desenvolveram efeitos colaterais ao tratamento, sendo os mais comuns: anorexia, diarréia, epistaxe e necrose cutânea no sítio de implantação; cerca de 45% deste animais morreram, indicando intoxicação. Amostras de sangue e dos tecidos hepático, renal e muscular de todos os animais pertencentes ao experimento foram submetidas à detecção das concentrações de cisplatina, revelando a cinética de liberação da droga pelo sistema proposto.