Alimta
Alimta is the brand name for pemetrexed, an FDA approved chemotherapy agent.
It is the first and only drug approved by the FDA for the treatment of malignant pleural mesothelioma.
Originally developed at Princeton University, it was later acquired by Eli Lilly for pharmaceutical development and was approved for use in early 2004.
Chemotherapy involves the use of drugs to fight cancer cells in the body. One or more combinations of drugs are given under strict medical supervision, often at a hospital or other medical center, though recent innovations have made chemotherapy sometimes available at the patient’s home.
Chemotherapy in general
Chemotherapy drugs are designed to target many of cancer cells’ distinguishing characteristics. Though side effects are sometimes unavoidable, recent advances have gained new ground in reducing those side effects as much as possible, providing a new level of comfort for patients.
Cancer begins with a malfunction of the body.
Cancer begins with damaged or aberrant DNA, which can cause the body to grow cells that ultimately hurt its tissues and organs. These growths can include more cells than are necessary, cells that outlive their usefulness, or cells that do not function as they should. A mass of these aberrant cells is known as a tumor.
Some tumors, called benign tumors, do not invade the tissues surrounding them and are not a threat to the body’s health. Malignant tumors, however, are composed of aberrant cells that attack the tissues surrounding them. They also sometimes spread to other parts of the body, in a process researchers call metastasis.
The ongoing effort to determine the effects of cancer is one of medical research’s biggest priorities. Substances known to cause cancer are called carcinogens.