Effect of a single infusion of alendronate in malignant hypercalcaemia: dose dependency and comparison with clodronate.

Among aminohydroxybisphosphonate derivatives, alendronate (3-amino-1-hydroxybutylidene-1,1-bisphosphonate) has proved efficacious in diseases with increased bone resorption. However, the effective dose in the treatment of malignant hypercalcemia is not clearly established. In 2 randomized studies, we investigated the effects of alendronate and of clodronate (dichloromethylene bisphosphonate) given as a single infusion in 82 rehydrated patients with malignant hypercalcaemia. Various doses of alendronate or clodronate soon produced a significant fall in plasma calcium (Ca), accompanied by a dose-dependent decrease in the fasting urinary Ca/creatinine ratio, taken as a reflection of bone resorption. During the next 5 days, plasma Ca and fasting urinary Ca/creatinine ratio were lower in the group treated with alendronate than in the clodronate group. The renal handling of Ca was similar in both groups. Because of relapsing hypercalcaemia, some patients received an infusion of alendronate approximately 2 weeks after the first infusion; this normalized the urinary Ca/creatinine ratio in 44% of the cases at day 3. At that time, the plasma Ca was below 2.70 mmol/l in 33%. Our results indicate that alendronate decreased bone resorption and calcaemia in cancer patients in a dose-dependent manner.