title: Pharmacokinetics of high molecular weight agents.
abstract: The various high molecular weight agents discussed in this chapter are at different stages of gestation, but as yet none have had a clear clinical impact despite many years of scientific effort. The problems that have been encountered along the way for many agents are similar: how to avoid reticuloendothelial trapping and how to achieve adequate penetration of a macromolecule into a solid tumour. The solutions offered to these problems are as diverse as the agents themselves, and, as a spin-off, our understanding of tumour cell behaviour (eg endocytosis) has improved. For many of the systems discussed, it remains unclear whether this approach is just a complex way of administering a continuous low dose infusion of the cytotoxic component. Advances in this field appear to have accelerated over the last 2-3 years, and it should not be much longer before these scientifically pleasing and elegant systems are shown to have clinical advantages over conventional cytotoxic drug delivery.
authors.affiliation: CRC Department of Medical Oncology, Glasgow University.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cassidy
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Newell
authors.forename: S R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Wedge
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cummings
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D004337:Drug Carriers; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D006801:Humans; D000922:Immunotoxins / Q000378:metabolism*; D008081:Liposomes; D008970:Molecular Weight; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D004337:Drug Carriers; D000922:Immunotoxins; D008081:Liposomes