[Oxaliplatin: a first DACH-platinum in oncology].

Around 3,000 cisplatin analogues have been synthetised over the past 30 years but only half a dozen are presently in clinical development, while only two (cisplatin and carboplatin) have been available prior to the recent European registration of oxaliplatin. Oxaliplatin is a new platinum salt belonging to the DACH (diaminocyclohexane) platinum family, and is the only such cisplatin analogue that has entered clinical development and achieved approval for marketing. During its development, oxaliplatin has aroused lively interest due, firstly, to its in vitro and in vivo antitumoral activity, especially in cisplatin-resistant models and cell lines expressing resistance genes, and, secondly, to its good clinical tolerance, the absence of renal or auditory toxicity being combined with a low hematotoxicity. Combined with other antitumoral agent cytotoxic agents (5FU, raltitrexed, irinotecan or cisplatin), oxaliplatin produces an additive and often synergistic cytotoxic effect. The oxaliplatin-5FU +/- FA combination is now well established in metastatic colorectal cancer. Regarding its particular cytotoxic characteristics and its activity in mismatch repair deficient cells (which are resistant to cisplatin and carboplatin), oxaliplatin is shows potential in a large variety of solid tumor types, notably in association with other cytotoxic agents, thus opening the path to a wider range of indications.