Bendamustine hydrochloride - a renaissance of alkylating strategies in anticancer medicine.

Alkylating drugs represent one of the oldest classes of anticancer medicine used in a broad variety of clinical indications. Bendamustine hydrochloride (Ribomustine, Treanda) is a newer alkylating agent which has already been under intensive clinical investigation and has gained emerging interest due to its unique pharmacological properties, particularly in resistant or refractory diseases. This article provides basic information on the molecular mechanisms of action of bendamustine and its pharmacological characteristics and an overview on published clinical trials where bendamustine is analyzed as a single agent as well as in combination therapies for the treatment of solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.