Conclusion and perspectives
At present the primary mechanism(s) of suramin action is not known. It is possible that several of the factors mentioned in this review are of importance for the drug's antitumor activity and even that different mechanisms are of importance for different cell types. An improved knowledge about the relative importance of the many different biologic effects of suramin is essential to the establishment of better drug combinations and to the development of suramin derivatives with an improved therapeutic index. The development and characterization of suramin-resistant cells would be a major step in this direction.
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Larsen, A.K. Suramin: an anticancer drug with unique biological effects. Cancer Chemother. Pharmacol. 32, 96–98 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00685609
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00685609