title: Treatment of neurotoxic side effects of interferon-alpha with naltrexone.
abstract: Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) has potential dose-limiting neurotoxic side effects when used in cancer therapy. The nature of this neurotoxicity is speculative, and there is no definitive treatment. Because animal studies suggest that IFN-alpha acts at opioid receptor sites, we gave naltrexone, a long-acting opioid antagonist, to 9 patients who had hematological malignancies and who suffered from IFN-alpha side effects. Seven of these patients experienced complete or moderate relief of side effects. Five of the patients tested before and during naltrexone treatment showed improvement of cognitive functioning. Two patients could not tolerate naltrexone side effects. This study suggests an intervention against IFN-alpha side effects and provides support for the role of opioid receptor interaction in IFN-alpha neurotoxicity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuro-Oncology, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, USA.
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Valentine
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Meyers
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Talpaz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015464:Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009271:Naltrexone / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D013920:Thrombocythemia, Essential / Q000628:therapy
chemical_list: D016898:Interferon-alpha; D009271:Naltrexone