Side Effects of Anthracycline

Anthracyclines are a class of chemotherapy drugs that double as antibiotics. These drugs are used in treating many types of cancer according to mesotheliomaweb.org. Drugs in this family have some very serious side-effects, however. The names of these medications include epirubicin (Ellence, Pharmorubicin); idarubicin (Idamvcin); doxorubicin (Adriamycin, Rubex); and daunorubicin (Cerubidine) according to RxList.com.

How Do Anthracyclines Work?

• Anthracyclines function by interfering with cell division. When cells can't divide, they don't multiply. These drugs work directly on the DNA structure of the cell. When the DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid is disturbed, the cell loses its code to replicate. The drugs "work by forming free oxygen radicals that break DNA strands thereby inhibiting DNA synthesis," says Mesotheliomaweb.org.

  According to the National Cancer Institute, "Anthracyclines damage the DNA in cancer cells, causing them to die."

Side Effects of Anthracyclines

• A major problem with this class of drugs are their cardiotoxic effects. This means that they can have bad effects on the heart. Anthracyclines disrupt a chemical in the heart's mitrochondrial cells that protect them. Anthracyclines interfere with this chemical, and the chemo drug ends up poisoning the heart according to the Denver Naturopathic Center.

  Other side effects are nausea, alopecia, or loss of hair, tissue necrosis (cell death), diarrhea, abdominal pain, thrombophlebitis, blood clots, fever and chills according to RxList.com. Acute reactions to the drug have also occurred in the form of anaphylactic shock, a severe, whole-body allergic reaction. The person may feel dizzy, lose consciousness, have trouble breathing, skin turning blue, tongue swelling, low blood pressure, heart failure and death, according to MedicineNet.com.

  According to Chemocare.com, the side effects of these drugs will usually go away after discontinuation of chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy Cycles

• The drugs used in chemotherapy, and the timing of the treatment depend on whether the cancer cells are dividing, or at rest. When dividing, the drugs that effect the cancer cells are called cell-cycle specific, and drugs that affect cancer cells at rest are called cell-cycle non-specific.

  Because of this multiplying and at rest behavior of cancer cells, chemotherapy is given in cycles. Drugs used to combat cancer are most effective when the cells are dividing according to Chemocare.com.

Luekemia and Breast Cancer Treatment with Anthracyclines

• Anthracyclines were developed to treat lymphomas, leukemia, uterine, ovarian, lung and breast cancers according to Mesotheliomaweb.org.

  Although all breast cancers do not respond to anthracyclines, those women with HER2 positive breast cancers could benefit from these drugs. HER2 is a protein over-produced by the cancer tumors. The National Cancer Institute says "...women whose tumors produce too much of a protein called HER2... may be the only ones who actually benefit from anthracycline chemotherapy."

  According to Leukemia-web.org, anthracyclines are used in the treatment of leukemia, a blood cancer. The chemotherapy drugs are give to the patient in what is called "induction" to rid the blood of cancer cells. When this happens, more long-term options can be discussed including bone marrow transplants where the blood cells are produced.

Warnings and Drug Interactions

• Anthracyclines carry a risk of the patient developing leukemia many years after being treated with these drugs according to Chemocare.com.

  According to RxList.com, anthracyclines are a powerful bone marrow suppressant that will occur in all patients given a therapeutic dose of these drugs. In addiction, they are cardiotoxic as mentioned above. Use of these drugs come with inherent risks that must be weighed by the benefits of their use.

  No information in this article is meant to diagnose, or otherwise suggest a course of treatment, or use of anthracycline drugs. It is meant only as a general information source.