Anticoagulant and fibrinolytic drugs - possible agents in treatment of lung cancer?

The effect of anticoagulant adjuvant anti-tumor therapy depends on the cancer type and stage and on the type of the used anticoagulant drug. A striking response rate was described in experiments involving human patients with lung cancer. The aim of this study is to review anticoagulant and fibrinolytic drugs as antitumor agents with focus on their clinical use. The first part of the review evaluates the results of clinical studies. The results of early clinical research are promising and observations suggest novel approaches to the experimental therapy of lung cancer. The second part of the review shortly describes the problem of thrombosis in patients with lung cancer (incidence of thromboembolic disease and its pathogenesis). The third part briefly describes the antimetastatic and antitumor attributes of anticoagulants and fibrinolytics.