RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Glucocorticoids in clinical oncology
JF Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine
JO Cleve Clin J Med
FD Cleveland Clinic
SP 505
OP 515
VO 59
IS 5
A1 Walsh, Declan
A1 Avashia, Jay
YR 1992
UL http://www.ccjm.org/content/59/5/505.abstract
AB Glucocorticoids have been used in clinical oncology for more than three decades. Their anti-inflammatory action plays a major role in their clinical applications in oncology. The incidence and severity of side effects depend on the total dose and the duration of therapy, but optimal dosages for these drugs have not been determined. Little is known about other risk factors for toxicity. Prednisone and dexamethasone, the two most commonly used drugs, are well absorbed orally and share quantitatively similar pharmacokinetic values. No definite relationship is known between the glucocorticoid blood level (total and unbound concentration) and therapeutic effect. Glucocorticoids play a major role in the treatment of lymphoproliferative disorders and breast cancer, and they often succeed in palliating common symptoms in advanced cancer.