Bladder Cancer

A drug that comes from the bacterium Streptomyces peucetius and is used alone or with other drugs to treat many types of cancer, including leukemia, lymphoma, neuroblastoma, sarcoma, Wilms tumor, and certain cancers of the lung, breast, stomach, ovary, thyroid, and bladder. It is also being studied in the treatment of other types of cancer. Doxorubicin hydrochloride damages the cell’s DNA and may kill cancer cells. It also blocks a certain enzyme needed for cell division and DNA repair. Doxorubicin hydrochloride is a type of anthracycline antibiotic and a type of topoisomerase inhibitor. Doxorubicin is the active ingredient of doxorubicin hydrochloride. Also called Adriamycin and hydroxydaunorubicin.

In the EU doxorubicin pegylated liposomal (as Caelyx) is indicated to treat breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and AIDS-related Kaposi’s sarcoma. It is indicated to treat multiple myeloma in combination with bortezomib.[1] Doxorubicin hydrochloride (as Myocet liposomal) is indicated to treat breast cancer in combination with cyclophosphamide.

Doxorubicin hydrochloride is approved to be used alone or with other drugs to treat:

• Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
• Acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
• Breast cancer.
• Gastric (stomach) cancer that is metastatic.
• Hodgkin lymphoma.
• Neuroblastoma that is metastatic.
• Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
• Non-small cell lung cancer that is metastatic.
• Ovarian cancer that is metastatic.
• Small cell lung cancer that is metastatic.
• Soft tissue and bone sarcomas that are metastatic.
• Thyroid cancer that is metastatic.
• Transitional cell bladder cancer that is metastatic.
• Wilms tumor that is metastatic.
• Doxorubicin hydrochloride is also being studied in the treatment of other types of cancer.

Doxorubicin hydrochloride is also available in a different form called doxorubicin hydrochloride liposome. For more information, see the Drug Information Summary for Doxorubicin Hydrochloride Liposome.