THE CLINICAL USE OF MUTAGENIC ANTICANCER DRUGS

Cytotoxic chemotherapy is routinely used in the treatment of cancer, a nd has been an important factor in increasing 5-year survival rates fo r some types of this disease. A range of drugs are currently available , with differing modes of action. As well as causing some direct toxic effects, most if not all of these drugs are both mutagenic and carcin ogenic. Although comparative information on these properties is genera lly available for anticancer drugs which alkylate DNA, it has been les s readily accessible for other drug classes. This special issue contai ns seven reviews on the mutagenic properties of the major classes of c ytotoxic drugs in clinical use, as well as one on a class of drugs tha t is under development. Some carcinogenicity data are also summarised, where available, Additionally, there are four more general papers, in cluding one on the use of genetic activity profiles for comparing muta genicity of the drugs, two on germ-cell effects, and one on biomonitor ing for exposure to genotoxic anticancer drugs.