BACKGROUND Thalidomide maintenance therapy after stem cell transplantation resulted in increased progression-free survival and overall survival in a few trials, but its role in non-transplant eligible patients with multiple myeloma remains unclear. This study assessed the impact of thalidomide-interferon in comparison to interferon maintenance therapy in elderly patients with multiple myeloma. ...

Thalidomide is a beneficial agent for treating a variety of refractory dermatologic disorders including erythema nodosom leprosum, lupus erythematosus, prurigo nodularis, actinic prurigo, pyoderma gangrenosum and aphthous stomatitis. Two thalidomide analogues, lenalidomide and CC-4047, are considerably more potent with decreased side effects when compared to thalidomide. They are currently unde...

Uterine relaxation is crucial during preterm labor. Phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE-4) inhibitors have been proposed as tocolytics. Some thalidomide analogs are PDE-4 inhibitors. The aim of this study was to assess the uterus-relaxant properties of two thalidomide analogs, methyl 3-(4-nitrophthalimido)-3-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-propanoate (4NO2PDPMe) and methyl 3-(4-aminophthalimido)-3-(3,4-dimethoxyphe...

PURPOSE The aim of this work was to study changes in the tumor microenvironment early after an antiangiogenic treatment using thalidomide (a promising angiogenesis inhibitor in a variety of cancers), with special focus on a possible "normalization" of the tumor vasculature that could be exploited to improve radiotherapy. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Tumor oxygenation, perfusion, permeability, intersti...

Thalidomide and its analog, Lenalidomide, are in current use clinically for treatment of multiple myeloma, complications of leprosy and cancers. An additional analog, Pomalidomide, has recently been licensed for treatment of multiple myeloma, and is purported to be clinically more potent than either Thalidomide or Lenalidomide. Using a combination of zebrafish and chicken embryos together with ...

INTRODUCTION Treatment for erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL), an immunological complication of leprosy, is diverse. We undertook a systematic review as it was not clear which treatments were most beneficial. METHODS We did a systematic search to identify randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing treatment with placebo, no treatment or another therapy. Two authors assessed quality and checke...

The present review aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of thalidomide and lenalidomide, two immunomodulatory drugs with anti-angiogenic properties, in women with recurrent ovarian, fallopian tube, and primary peritoneal cancer. A systematic review of the literature was conducted whereby Medline and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched using terms associated with ...

BACKGROUND Arginine vasopressin (AVP) controls gastroesophageal variceal bleeding, partly due to its vasoconstrictive effect on portal-systemic collaterals. It has been shown that chronic thalidomide treatment decreases portal pressure, attenuates hyperdynamic circulation and inhibits vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha in partially portal vein-ligate...

The article by Miyata et al. (2003) in the April issue of Drug Metabolism and Disposition reported that thalidomide inhibited the proliferation of embryo fibroblasts in the presence of microsomes from rabbit liver or HepG2 cells pretreated with 3-methylchlolanthrene (3-MC). Mouse liver microsomes or microsomes from human HepG2 cells pretreated with vehicle did not cause inhibition. The inhibiti...

Thalidomide has indications for the treatment of several immune-related, neoplastic, and inflammatory diseases, in both adults and children. Despite numerous therapeutic indications for the application of thalidomide, the influence of that drug upon skeletal system has not been recognized. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of thalidomide on the osseous tissue in young ...