Summary
Since our previous findings had indicated that the androgenic steroid medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) exerts potent inhibitory effects on 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene (DMBA)-induced tumor growth, we have studied the effect of low doses of MPA released from Depo-Provera and from 50:50 poly[DL-lactide-co-glycolide] microspheres in the same DMBA-induced tumor model. The present data show that single subcutaneous injection of a 4-month controlled-release formulation of biodegradable 50:50 poly[DL-lactide-co-glycolide] microspheres containing 10 mg of MPA giving serum levels of 3.14±0.32 ng/ml (8.12±0.83 nM) MPA causes a maximal or near-maximal 60% inhibition of tumor growth measured 56 days later. Such data suggest that controlled-release formulations giving constant and low blood levels of MPA could be used for the treatment of breast cancer in women. Such a low concentration of MPA should avoid the side effects observed with the high doses of the compound.
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Li, S., Lepage, M., Mérand, Y. et al. Growth inhibition of 7,12-dimethylbenz(a)anthracene-induced rat mammary tumors by controlled-release low-dose medroxyprogesterone acetate. Breast Cancer Res Tr 24, 127–137 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01961245
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01961245