New-generation platinum drugs in the treatment of cisplatin-resistant cancers.

Platinum drugs with altered stable ligands, such as oxaliplatin and satraplatin, produce a different DNA-adduct profile to cisplatin. This results in a distinct therapeutic profile, and clinical trials with these agents demonstrate significant anticancer activity in diseases with inherent or acquired resistance to cisplatin, such as colorectal and prostate cancers as well as previously treated ovarian and germ-cell cancer. An alternative approach to increasing the efficacy associated with platinum therapy is to enhance tumour delivery by coupling platinum drugs with a polymer or encapsulating the agent in a liposome. The early clinical trials of these novel delivery formulations are promising but, as yet, have not confirmed that the delivery of platinum to the tumour cell DNA is increased.