Comparison of safety and toxicity of liposomal versus conventional Doxorubicin: an updated review

Abstract

Cancer persists to be a major cause of hospitalization and death every year. With the passage of time, new formulations of anticancer drugs are being introduced to the market and are drawing the concern of healthcare professionals in terms of the superiority, toxicology, and cost-effectiveness of the new formulations in comparison to the conventional formulation of the same drugs. Doxorubicin, a highly potent chemotherapeutic agent, it comes with three formulations (pegylated liposomal, nonpegylated liposomal and non-liposomal conventional formulations). English-language literature of the three formulations of Doxorubicin has been reviewed to inform the healthcare professionals regarding the differences between these formulations. Liposomal Doxorubicin promotes better toxicology profile than non-liposomal conventional Doxorubicin with an increased cost. Due to very limited studies, the cost-effectiveness of liposomal Doxorubicin is not well defined. Apart from that, this review highlights the inter patient variability in regard to the clearance and volume of distribution following the administration of liposomal Doxorubicin. In conclusion, further studies regarding the superiority of liposomal formulation of Doxorubicin , efficacy and dose standardization of liposomal Doxorubicin should be sought in the near future in a more better way.

Anthracyclines Strike Back: Rediscovering Non-Pegylated Liposomal Doxorubicin in Current Therapeutic Scenarios of Breast Cancer

“…These distinctive features are at the basis of a more delayed administration schedule and some differences in the toxicity profile. Namely, the pegylated form, as compared with the non-pegylated form, has been associated with less frequent high-grade alopecia but higher rates of hand-foot syndrome, which is a doselimiting toxicity for PLD [11,12]. However, within this paper, we will specifically focus on non-pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (NPLD), with the aim of dissecting its differences with conventional anthracyclines, and highlighting its relevance and optimal positioning in the current therapeutic algorithms.…”