New approaches to treating and preventing bone metastases.
OBJECTIVE
Treatment and prevention of bone metastases is a major problem in patients with cancer. New treatment of bone metastases are needed to maintain the quality of life of our patients with metastastic bone disease. In addition, promising preliminary results suggest that bone-directed therapies may be able to prevent both skeletal and extraskeletal metastases


RESULTS
For the past decade intravenous bisphosphonates have been the mainstay of treatment of patients with bone metastases. New therapies such as the antibody to RANKL (denosumab) are undergoing phase III clinical testing. In addition, confirmatory studies suggesting that bisphosphonates can prevent metastatic disease are underway.


CONCLUSIONS
Understanding the biology of bone metastases has uncovered many new potential therapies for the treatment and prevention of bone metastases. Many of these potential new approaches are discussed in the enclosed article.
Lipton
Allan
A
Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, MS Hershey Medical Center of the Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033, USA. alipton@hmc.psu.edu
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use; D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology / Q000556:secondary; D056657:Cathepsin K / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D000069448:Denosumab; D004164:Diphosphonates / Q000627:therapeutic use; D065128:Endothelin Receptor Antagonists; D006801:Humans; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis / Q000188:drug therapy; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D053245:RANK Ligand / Q000627:therapeutic use
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D061067:Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D050071:Bone Density Conservation Agents; D004164:Diphosphonates; D065128:Endothelin Receptor Antagonists; D053245:RANK Ligand; D000069448:Denosumab; D056657:Cathepsin K; C527128:odanacatib