Tumor angiogenesis as a therapeutic target.
Angiogenesis - the formation of new blood vessels within a tumor (or many other tissue types) - has become a hotbed of pharmacological research as well as industrial drug discovery. This is the result of the efforts of a generation of scientists elucidating the complex (patho)physiological, biochemical and molecular events accompanying angiogenesis. It is estimated that >300 drug candidates are currently in various stages of testing, and it is, therefore, impossible to capture all of this in a brief review. Therefore, the emphasis here is on relatively advanced projects that are either in preclinical or clinical development, thus neglecting, to a large extent, the many exciting avenues being pursued in both academic and biotechnology laboratories. Although the potential of the approaches described cannot be overestimated, it is also important to note that there is still no drug on the market that achieves clinical benefit based on a selective modulation or inhibition of angiogenesis.
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Head of Oncology Research, Novartis Pharma AG, 4002, Tel.: +41 61 696 2049; fax: +41 61 696 7826, Basel, Switzerland