Synergistic growth inhibition of PC3 prostate cancer cells with low-dose combinations of simvastatin and alendronate.

The mevalonate pathway plays an important role in cancer biology and has been targeted with farnesyl transferase inhibitors, although their efficacy is limited due to significant adverse effects. Statins and bisphosphonates inhibit the mevalonate pathway at different steps, thus having negative effects at various levels on cancer cells. A combination of these drugs may result in an amplified cytotoxic effect and allow for use of significantly lower doses of the drugs involved.

Topoisomerase 1 inhibitors and cancer therapy.

Topoisomerase 1 inhibitors cure human cancer xenografts in animal models, more so than most other chemotherapy agents. However, their activity in patients with cancer is modest. Ongoing research is studying the optimal analogues that could reproduce animal data in the cancer population.