title: Treatment of cachexia: An overview of recent developments.
abstract: Body wasting in the context of chronic illness is associated with reduced quality of life and impaired survival. Recent clinical trials have investigated different approaches to improve patients' skeletal muscle mass and strength, exercise capacity, and survival in the context of cachexia and body wasting, many of them in patients with cancer. The aim of this article is to summarise clinical trials published over the last two years. Therapeutic approaches discussed here include appetite stimulants like megestrol acetate, l-carnitine, or melatonin, anti-inflammatory drugs like thalidomide, pentoxyphylline, or a monoclonal antibody against interleukin-1α as well as ghrelin and the ghrelin agonist anamorelin, nutritional support, and anabolics like enobosarm and testosterone.
authors: Division of Innovative Clinical Trials, Department of Cardiology and Pneumology, University Medical Centre Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany; Applied Cachexia Research, Department of Cardiology, Charité Medical School, Campus Virchow-Klinikum, Berlin, Germany. Electronic address: stephan.von.haehling@web.de.
authors: Stephan
authors: S
authors: von Haehling
authors: Division of Innovative Clinical Trials, Department of Cardiology and Pneumology, University Medical Centre Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.
authors: Stefan D
authors: SD
authors: Anker
mesh_terms: D019167:Appetite Stimulants / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002100:Cachexia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D005081:Exercise Therapy / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D019167:Appetite Stimulants
keywords: Cachexia; Cancer; Therapy; Wasting