CONVENTIONAL AND PROSPECTIVE MOLECULAR TARGETS IN ANTITUMOR DRUG DESIGN - CONCEPTS IN ANTITUMOR RESEARCH

To introduce a rationale in a drug development program the molecular b ase of the pathological lesion must be carefully considered both for s electing test compounds and to apply the most appropriate assay system s. From the beginning of antitumour drug research the principal aim ha s always been to select chemical compounds which could selectively inh ibit tumour growth. This strategy was in full harmony with the concept that tumours are build up by fast proliferating cells. Research based on this concept has resulted in the development of more than 40 cytos tatic agents, which are rather diverse in their chemical properties, b ut all act on one of the molecular mechanisms participating in cell pr oliferation. However the unsatisfactory therapeutic responses which co uld be obtained by the cytostatic agents focused the attention on thos e molecular events in the tumour cells which may be more closely relat ed to the progression of the malignant disease.