Drug TEMODAL and Radiotherapy for brain cancer treatment

Canada Health Government has approved the drug TEMODAL in combination with Radiotherapy for treating patients with glioblastoma multiforme brain cancer. The drug TEMODAL that contains Temozolomide is produced by Schering-Plough Corporation and is used in treating two forms of brain cancer Glioblastoma multiforme and anaplastic astrocytoma.

Clinical study using the drug TEMODAL was tested on newly diagnosed glioblastoma multiforme patients by researchers from National Cancer Institute, Canada and European organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer and they found the drug to be effective in controlling the growth of malignant cells in the brain, by producing cytotoxic effect on cancer cells and prevents replication and production of cancer cells. Researchers have found on a clinical study on 573 patients that a combination of drug TEMODAL and radiotherapy in brain cancer patients reduces the tumor burden and significantly increases the survival of the cancer patients. The drug has been shown very effective but is found to cause mild side effects of myelosuppression in patients and the researchers have reported the results of their study in the Journal the New England Journal of Medicine.