title: Liposomal muramyl tripeptide phosphatidyl ethanolamine: a safe and effective agent against osteosarcoma pulmonary metastases.
abstract: Osteosarcoma is the most common form of primary malignant bone tumor. The use of chemotherapy drugs with many side effects, including high-dose methotrexate, doxorubicin, cisplatin and ifosfamide, has greatly improved osteosarcoma survival compared with surgery alone. However, for 20 years, overall survival remained at a plateau of 60-70% in nonmetastatic disease and 20-30% in metastatic osteosarcoma owing to lung metastases. Liposomal muramyl tripeptide phosphatidyl ethanolamine (L-MTP-PE) is a new agent that improves overall osteosarcoma survival (chemotherapy without L-MTP-PE 70% versus with L-MTP-PE 78%; p = 0.03). L-MTP-PE offers additional benefit for osteosarcoma treatment in combination with chemotherapy, particularly ifosfamide-containing regimens. Clinical experience indicates that side effects such as fever are temporary and controlled or prevented with ibuprofen and/or acetoaminophen premedication; severe side effects are rare. Although surgery will remain the main approach for osteosarcoma treatment of lung metastases, L-MTP-PE combined with other modalities, including chemotherapy, appears to be of benefit in these patients as well.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Shiga University of Medical Science, Tsukinowa-cho, Otsu, Shiga, 520-2192 Japan. kanchi@belle.shiga-med.ac.jp
authors.forename: Kanji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mori
authors.forename: Kosei
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ando
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Heymann
mesh_terms: D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D000818:Animals; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D017321:Clinical Trials, Phase I as Topic; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008081:Liposomes; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary*; D008297:Male; D012516:Osteosarcoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000556:secondary* / Q000628:therapy; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011379:Prognosis; D016019:Survival Analysis; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D008081:Liposomes; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines; C037144:mifamurtide; D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine