Ixabepilone Treatment Schedules in Advanced Breast Cancer.

Ixabepilone, the first of a new class of microtubule-stabilizing anticancer agents, is approved in 17 countries worldwide. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2007 for treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic breast cancer progressing after taxanes and anthracyclines. Ixabepilone may be used either in combination with capecitabine, or as monotherapy if the patient has already progressed on capecitabine. At the approved dosage regimen of 40 mg/m2 in a single intravenous infusion every 3 weeks, reversible myelosuppression and peripheral neuropathy (primarily sensory) are the most common dose-limiting adverse events seen with this agent. In an attempt to improve the balance of efficacy and tolerability, other ixabepilone treatment schedules are being actively investigated. Although hematologic, neurologic, and liver function parameters must be carefully monitored when studying new administration schedules for ixabepilone, preliminary results suggest that weekly and daily schedules may have improved tolerability compared with the standard 3-weekly regimen. Ixabepilone is also showing promise for use in combination with other anticancer agents (eg, bevacizumab, lapatinib) and in earlier lines of breast cancer therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]