In this article, we intend to explore the role of using an ”infinite time horizon” framework address issues sustainability and long-term strategies in control biological processes. We use two case study models explain why considering a fixed or moving endpoint does not lead desired effects. The first model considered concerns spread infectious disease its treatment as infinite horizon optimal p...

BACKGROUND Metronomic chemotherapy (MC) is defined as the frequent administration of chemotherapy at doses below the maximal tolerated dose and with no prolonged drug-free break. MC is gaining interest as an alternative strategy to fight resistant cancer. OBJECTIVE to assess the safety of 4 drug MC regimen in paediatric patients with refractory or relapsing various tumour types. SETTING Fro...

BACKGROUND Anticancer chemotherapy is thought to be effective by means of direct cytotoxicity on tumor cells. Alternative mechanisms of efficacy have been ascribed to several common anticancer agents; including cyclophosphamide (CTX) and capecitabine (Cap) when given at lower doses for prolonged period (metronomic chemotherapy) postulating an antiangiogenic activity as well. AIM OF WORK To ev...

PURPOSE The current meta-analysis aimed to summarize the available evidence for the efficacy and serious adverse events (AEs) associated with use of metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). METHOD Electronic databases (PubMed, EMBASE database, Web of Knowledge, and the Cochrane database) were systematically searched for articles related to the use of MCT ...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the activity and toxicity of metronomic chemotherapy with low-dose oral cyclophosphamide (CTX) and methotrexate (MTX) in patients with metastatic CRPC that progresses after docetaxel. Patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) that progresses after docetaxel may benefit from receiving further chemotherapy. METHODS Patients were treated with CTX 50 mg/d ...

Immunotherapy could be combined with conventional chemotherapeutic modalities aimed at reducing tumor burden. Such combination therapy may be most useful when "metronomic" doses of antineoplastic drugs are used, thereby potentially avoiding some of the immunosuppressive effects of these drugs. Recent studies have shown that some conventional antineoplastic drugs can be exploited for antiangioge...

BACKGROUND Oral metronomic chemotherapy is a therapeutic option which is particularly attractive due to its ease of administration and low toxic burden. Its mechanism of action probably involves antiangiogenetic effect rather than a classical antiproliferative effect like standard maximally tolerated dose-based regimens. PATIENTS AND METHODS A retrospective analysis of 61 patients with advanc...

The association of bevacizumab and irinotecan has been shown to display a quick efficacy in low-grade glioma (LGG), but most patients relapse within months after cessation of therapy. From October 2012 to March 2014, four patients have been treated with irinotecan-bevacizumab followed by a metronomic maintenance with weekly vinblastine to try to prevent relapses. After a median follow-up of 23 ...

We describe two paradigmatic cases where metronomic antitumor chemotherapy was successfully employed in patients not suitable for standard treatments. The first patient was affected by advanced soft tissue sarcoma but she also had ischemic cardiopathy. She received oral cyclophosphamide 50 mg once daily and methotrexate 2.5 mg bid twice weekly, obtaining a significant clinical response with a p...

Ovarian cancer (OC) is the leading cause of death from gynaecological cancer. It is extremely hard to diagnose in the early stages and around 70% of patients present with advanced disease. Metronomic chemotherapy (MCT) is described as the chronic administration of, generally low, equally spaced, doses of chemotherapeutic drugs with therapeutic efficacy and low toxicity. This is an effective and...