Taxanes: promising anti-cancer drugs

Abstract

Taxanes are amongst the most promising antitumor agents available at hand today, of increasing importance in Asia given that cancer is now one of the major public health problems which needs to be dealt urgently for the benefit of affected patients. Several ongoing experimental and clinical trials have supported the fact that even with their side effects and poor solubilities, taxanes are still the first lines of treatment chosen for breast, ovary, lung and other metastatic cancers. Prolonging the life of cancer patients is the main aim of all researchers, scientists, pharmaceutical companies and clinicians; therefore this review emphasizes the mechanisms of action of taxanes and how they can play an important role in palliative treatment if not applied for curative purposes, hence being considered a boon for cancer management.