Broad pharmacological principles and complications of chemotherapy, endocrine therapy, immunotherapy, molecularly targeted therapy, and radiotherapy
Four therapeutic modalities, four logics
| Modality | Target | Selectivity |
|---|---|---|
| Cytotoxic chemotherapy | Dividing cells | Poor - toxicity in gut, marrow, hair, gonads |
| Endocrine therapy | Hormone-dependent growth signal | Good; toxicity is hormone-deprivation |
| Targeted therapy | A specific molecular lesion | High, but only if the lesion is present |
| Immunotherapy | The host immune system, not the tumour | Toxicity is autoimmunity, not cytotoxicity |
| Radionuclide/theranostic | A tumour-expressed receptor carrying a radioisotope | Delivers radiation systemically (Lu-177 PSMA/DOTATATE, Ra-223, I-131) |
8 more sections, plus exam facts
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