A potential target associated with both cancer and cancer stem cells: A combination therapy for eradication of breast cancer using vinorelbine stealthy liposomes plus parthenolide stealthy liposomes

Therapeutic strategies targeting cancer stem cells

“…44 Parthenolide, a sesquiterpene lactone well known in natural medicine, can reverse the vinorelbine resistance of SP cells in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. 45 A combination of stealthy liposomal vinorelbine and stealthy liposomal parthenolide can fully inhibit the MCF-7 cell xenograft growth. 45 Moreover, some phytoestrogens/flavonoids, such as genistein, naringenin, acacetin and kaempferol, which have less effect on drug-sensitive leukemia K562 cells, can potentiate the cytotoxicity of SN-38 and mitoxantrone in breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP)-transduced K562 (K562/BCRP) cells, indicating these phytoestrogens/flavonoids may reverse multidrug-resistance protein (MRP)-mediated chemotherapy resistance.…”

“…45 A combination of stealthy liposomal vinorelbine and stealthy liposomal parthenolide can fully inhibit the MCF-7 cell xenograft growth. 45 Moreover, some phytoestrogens/flavonoids, such as genistein, naringenin, acacetin and kaempferol, which have less effect on drug-sensitive leukemia K562 cells, can potentiate the cytotoxicity of SN-38 and mitoxantrone in breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP)-transduced K562 (K562/BCRP) cells, indicating these phytoestrogens/flavonoids may reverse multidrug-resistance protein (MRP)-mediated chemotherapy resistance. 46 All these results show that some natural compounds are promising candidates in targeting CSCs for their several anticancer mechanisms.…”

Molecular Mechanisms Involving Therapeutic Resistance in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) – Roles of Hypoxic Microenvironment and Cancer Stem Cell

“…Furthermore, antitumor and therapeutic resistance-reversing effects of some phytochemicals such as Curcumin have been confirmed and proven to be prospective, which exhibit the capability of targeting side population cells (Fong et al, 2010). More recently, high inhibitory effect on breast cancer cells was acquired by combining stealthy liposomes from vinorelbine and parthenolide (Liu et al, 2008). Taken together, chemotherapy combined with TCM may dominate anti-cancer treatment if the niche is properly manipulated to overcome the chemoresisitance of CSCs resulting from genetic instability.…”

Drugs that Kill Cancer Stem-like Cells

“…Of considerable clinical interest is combination of parthenolide with established anti-cancer agents. To this effect, Liu et al (2008) reported that the combination of long-circulating (stealth) liposomes carrying parthenolide with those containing vinorelbine fully inhibited xenografts derived in immunocompromised mice from MCF7 cells. In cultured MCF7 cells sorted for the 'side-population' with high tumour-initiating potential, the combination of the two drugs exerted a very good anti-proliferative effect.…”