Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2012;9(1):e41-e49.
doi: 10.1016/j.ddstr.2012.06.001.

Treatment for Uterine Fibroids: Searching for Effective Drug Therapies

Affiliations

Treatment for Uterine Fibroids: Searching for Effective Drug Therapies

Darlene K Taylor et al. Drug Discov Today Ther Strateg. 2012.

Abstract

Uterine fibroids are common reproductive-age benign tumors that contribute to severe morbidity and infertility. Cumulative incidence is 4 times higher in Africian-Americans compared to Caucasians and constitutes a major health disparity challenge. Fibroids are the leading indication for hysterectomy and their management averages $21 billion annually in the US. No long term minimally invasive therapies exist. Thus, promising drug therapies, their chemistry, pharmacology, and clinical efficacy, focusing first on innovative drug delivery approaches, are reviewed.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
GnRH Agonist Structures. Modifications at positions 6 and 10 are the basis for development of variety of GnRHa.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Structures of Progestins and SPRMs. Comparison of the chemical structures of progesterone and Progesterone receptor (PR) agonists (progestins) and selective PR modulators (SPRMs;PR anatagonists with PR agonisitic properties). Small structural changes account for important differences in the effects of compounds on PR. As a point of reference, the steroid skeleton is also shown with the rings named and the positions numbered according to commonly used nomenclature.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Peddada SD, et al. Growth of uterine leiomyomata among premenopausal black and white women. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008;105(50):19887–19892. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Leppert PC, et al. A new hypothesis about the origin of uterine fibroids based on gene expression profiling with microarrays. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2006;195(2):415–420. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Catherino W, et al. Reduced dermatopontin expression is a molecular link between uterine leiomyomas and keloids. Genes Chromosomes Cancer. 2004;40:204–217. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Carrino DA, et al. Proteoglycans of uterine fibroids and keloid scars: Similarity in their proteoglycan composition. Biochem. J. 2012;443:361–368. This report presents evidence that uterine fibroids are characterized by disarrayed collagen fibrils strikingly similar to those of keloid scars. The authors find that keloids are a form of excessive dermal fibrosis demonstrating abnormal wound-healing response in certain individuals; they form after skin trauma such as surgery; they tend to develop during and after puberty and in women symptoms of keloids disappear after menopause; they produce high levels of collagen, and fibronectin; they are characterized as resisting apoptosis and thus continue to produce collagen.

    1. Cook H, et al. The impact of uterine leiomyomas on reproductive outcomes. Minerva Ginecol. 2010;62(3):225–236. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources