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Fenretinide and risk reduction of second breast cancer

Nature Clinical Practice Oncology volume 4, pages 64–65 (2007)Cite this article

Retinoids (natural or synthetic vitamin A derivatives) are being extensively evaluated in clinical trials as chemopreventive agents following the establishment in preclinical models of their role in the regulation of cell growth, differentiation and apoptosis. Retinoids can suppress tumor promotion and modify some properties of fully transformed malignant cells by activating or repressing specific genes through complex—and not yet completely elucidated—multiple signal transduction pathways.1

The synthetic amide of retinoic acid, N-(4-hydroxyphenyl) retinamide (4-HPR), or fenretinide, has been the retinoid most widely studied in chemoprevention clinical trials because of its favorable toxicity profile compared with other retinoids. In vitro, fenretinide inhibits the growth of several human cancer cell lines, acting through both retinoid-receptor-dependent and retinoid-receptor-independent mechanisms.1 In vivo, fenretinide selectively accumulates in breast tissue and is particularly active in inhibiting rat mammary carcinogenesis.1 An important feature of fenretinide is its ability to inhibit cell growth through the induction of apoptosis rather than through differentiation, an effect that is strikingly different from that of vitamin A.1 In contrast to tamoxifen, which inhibits only estrogen receptor (ER)-positive tumors, fenretinide induces apoptosis in both ER-positive and ER-negative breast cancer cell lines.2 All of these properties render fenretinide an attractive candidate for breast cancer chemoprevention.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. the Division of Medical Oncology, Genoa. B Bonanni is Co-Director of the Division of Chemoprevention, A Decensi is Director of, and S Zanardi and A Argusti work in, E.O. Ospedali Galliera, and U Veronesi is Scientific Director of the European Institute of Oncology, and A Costa is Director of the European School of Oncology, Milan, Italy.,

    Andrea Decensi, Silvia Zanardi, Alessandra Argusti, Bernardo Bonanni, Alberto Costa & Umberto Veronesi

Authors
  1. Andrea Decensi
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  2. Silvia Zanardi
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  3. Alessandra Argusti
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  4. Bernardo Bonanni
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  5. Alberto Costa
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  6. Umberto Veronesi
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Correspondence to Andrea Decensi.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Decensi, A., Zanardi, S., Argusti, A. et al. Fenretinide and risk reduction of second breast cancer. Nat Rev Clin Oncol 4, 64–65 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncponc0735

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