Clinical data | |
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Trade names | Alimta, Pemfexy, Ciambra, others |
AHFS/Drugs.com | Monograph |
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Routes of administration | Intravenous |
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Pharmacokinetic data | |
Bioavailability | NA |
Protein binding | 81% |
Metabolism | Negligible |
Elimination half-life | 3.5 hours |
Excretion | Kidney |
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ECHA InfoCard | 100.205.735 |
Chemical and physical data | |
Formula | C20H21N5O6 |
Molar mass | 427.417 g·mol−1 |
3D model (JSmol) | |
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Pemetrexed, sold under the brand name Alimta among others, is a chemotherapy medication for the treatment of pleural mesothelioma and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). [2]
It is available as a generic medication. [6] [7]
In February 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pemetrexed for treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma, a type of tumor of the mesothelium, the thin layer of tissue that covers many of the internal organs, in combination with cisplatin [8] for patients whose disease is either unresectable or who are not otherwise candidates for curative surgery. [9] In September 2008, the FDA granted approval as a first-line treatment, in combination with cisplatin, against locally advanced and metastatic non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in patients with non-squamous histology. [10] [11] [2]
Pemetrexed is also recommended in combination with carboplatin and pembrolizumab for the first-line treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer. [12] [13] However, the relative efficacy or toxicity of pemetrexed-cisplatin versus pemetrexed-carboplatin has not been established beyond what is generally thought about cisplatin or carboplatin doublet drug therapy. [14]
Patients are recommended to take folic acid and vitamin B12 supplement even if levels are normal when they are on pemetrexed therapy. [15] [2] (In clinical trials for mesothelioma, folic acid and B12 supplementation reduced the frequency of adverse events.) It is also recommended for patients to be on a glucocorticoid (e.g. dexamethasone) on the day prior, day of, and day after pemetrexed infusion to avoid skin rashes. [2]
The administration of cisplatin and vitamin B12 concomitantly does not modify the pharmacokinetics of the pemetrexed. It was recently shown that pemetrexed may play a role in cisplatin resistance in lung cancer by increasing the expression of Orai3 calcium channels as well as the expression of certain ABC transporters like MDR1 and MRP-5 responsible for cisplatin efflux and therefore a reduction of the effect of cisplatin [16] As current therapies are based on the co-administration of pemetrexed and cisplatin, there may be interactions between pemetrexed and cisplatin, including a reduction in the therapeutic effects of cisplatin caused by pemetrexed.
Pemetrexed is chemically similar to folic acid and is in the class of chemotherapy drugs called folate antimetabolites. It works by inhibiting three enzymes used in purine and pyrimidine synthesis—thymidylate synthase (TS), dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR), and glycinamide ribonucleotide formyltransferase [17] [18] (GARFT). By inhibiting the formation of precursor purine and pyrimidine nucleotides, pemetrexed prevents the formation of DNA and RNA, which are required for the growth and survival of both normal cells and cancer cells.
In the United States, as of 2015 [update] , each vial of the medication costs between US$2,623 and US$3,100. [19]
In February 2020, Pemfexy was approved for use in the United States. [20]
A Phase III study showed benefits of maintenance use of pemetrexed for non-squamous NSCLC. [21] Activity has been shown in malignant peritoneal mesothelioma. [22]
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that develops from the thin layer of tissue that covers many of the internal organs. The area most commonly affected is the lining of the lungs and chest wall. Less commonly the lining of the abdomen and rarely the sac surrounding the heart, or the sac surrounding the testis may be affected. Signs and symptoms of mesothelioma may include shortness of breath due to fluid around the lung, a swollen abdomen, chest wall pain, cough, feeling tired, and weight loss. These symptoms typically come on slowly.
Bevacizumab, sold under the brand name Avastin among others, is a monoclonal antibody medication used to treat a number of types of cancers and a specific eye disease. For cancer, it is given by slow injection into a vein (intravenous) and used for colon cancer, lung cancer, ovarian cancer, glioblastoma, hepatocellular carcinoma, and renal-cell carcinoma. In many of these diseases it is used as a first-line therapy. For age-related macular degeneration it is given by injection into the eye (intravitreal).
Nicholas J. Vogelzang was a medical oncologist with Comprehensive Cancer Centers of Nevada (CCCN). He serves as medical director of the Research Executive Committee and Associate Chair of the Developmental Therapeutics and Genitourinary Committees for US Oncology Research. His research interests include clinical trials for genitourinary malignancies and mesothelioma.
Targeted therapy or molecularly targeted therapy is one of the major modalities of medical treatment (pharmacotherapy) for cancer, others being hormonal therapy and cytotoxic chemotherapy. As a form of molecular medicine, targeted therapy blocks the growth of cancer cells by interfering with specific targeted molecules needed for carcinogenesis and tumor growth, rather than by simply interfering with all rapidly dividing cells. Because most agents for targeted therapy are biopharmaceuticals, the term biologic therapy is sometimes synonymous with targeted therapy when used in the context of cancer therapy. However, the modalities can be combined; antibody-drug conjugates combine biologic and cytotoxic mechanisms into one targeted therapy.
Non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), or non-small-cell lung carcinoma, is any type of epithelial lung cancer other than small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). NSCLC accounts for about 85% of all lung cancers. As a class, NSCLCs are relatively insensitive to chemotherapy, compared to small-cell carcinoma. When possible, they are primarily treated by surgical resection with curative intent, although chemotherapy has been used increasingly both preoperatively and postoperatively.
Ipilimumab, sold under the brand name Yervoy, is a monoclonal antibody medication that works to activate the immune system by targeting CTLA-4, a protein receptor that downregulates the immune system.
Ramucirumab is a fully human monoclonal antibody (IgG1) developed for the treatment of solid tumors. This drug was developed by ImClone Systems Inc. It was isolated from a native phage display library from Dyax.
Fosbretabulin is a microtubule destabilizing experimental drug, a type of vascular-targeting agent, a drug designed to damage the vasculature of cancer tumours causing central necrosis. It is a derivative of combretastatin. It is formulated as the salts fosbretabulin disodium and fosbretabulin tromethamine.
Combined small cell lung carcinoma is a form of multiphasic lung cancer that is diagnosed by a pathologist when a malignant tumor, arising from transformed cells originating in lung tissue, contains a component of;small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC), admixed with one components of any histological variant of non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) in any relative proportion.
Treatment of lung cancer refers to the use of medical therapies, such as surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, percutaneous ablation, and palliative care, alone or in combination, in an attempt to cure or lessen the adverse impact of malignant neoplasms originating in lung tissue.
Targeted therapy of lung cancer refers to using agents specifically designed to selectively target molecular pathways responsible for, or that substantially drive, the malignant phenotype of lung cancer cells, and as a consequence of this (relative) selectivity, cause fewer toxic effects on normal cells.
Crizotinib, sold under the brand name Xalkori among others, is an anti-cancer medication used for the treatment of non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). Crizotinib inhibits the c-Met/Hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR) tyrosine kinase, which is involved in the oncogenesis of a number of other histological forms of malignant neoplasms. It also acts as an ALK and ROS1 inhibitor.
Amatuximab is a chimeric monoclonal antibody designed for the treatment of cancer. It was developed by Morphotek, Inc.
Nivolumab, sold under the brand name Opdivo, is an anti-cancer medication used to treat a number of types of cancer. This includes melanoma, lung cancer, malignant pleural mesothelioma, renal cell carcinoma, Hodgkin lymphoma, head and neck cancer, urothelial carcinoma, colon cancer, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, liver cancer, gastric cancer, and esophageal or gastroesophageal junction cancer. It is administered intravenously.
Pembrolizumab, sold under the brand name Keytruda, is a humanized antibody, more specifically a PD-1 Inhibitor, used in cancer immunotherapy that treats melanoma, lung cancer, head and neck cancer, Hodgkin lymphoma, stomach cancer, cervical cancer, and certain types of breast cancer. It is administered by slow intravenous injection.
The PARAMOUNT trial is a clinical trial studying non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC). The trial was sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company and was conducted in several European countries and Canada. It was registered in November 2008 and was projected to end in September 2013.
Durvalumab, sold under the brand name Imfinzi, is an FDA-approved immunotherapy for cancer, developed by Medimmune/AstraZeneca. It is a human immunoglobulin G1 kappa (IgG1κ) monoclonal antibody that blocks the interaction of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) with the PD-1 (CD279).
Atezolizumab, sold under the brand name Tecentriq among others, is a monoclonal antibody medication used to treat urothelial carcinoma, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), small cell lung cancer (SCLC), hepatocellular carcinoma and alveolar soft part sarcoma, but discontinued for use in triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). It is a fully humanized, engineered monoclonal antibody of IgG1 isotype against the protein programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1).
Tepotinib, sold under the brand name Tepmetko, is an anti-cancer medication used for the treatment of adults with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).
Amivantamab, sold under the brand name Rybrevant, is a bispecific monoclonal antibody used to treat non-small cell lung cancer. Amivantamab is a bispecific epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor-directed and mesenchymal–epithelial transition (MET) receptor-directed antibody. It is the first treatment for adults with non-small cell lung cancer whose tumors have specific types of genetic mutations: epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) exon 20 insertion mutations.