Treatment method against side-effects of chemotherapy

Abstract

A method and composition is provided for organ rescue wherein a specific counter-measure is applied locally to a tissue at risk for or exhibiting an adverse side effect of a cancer treatment. More particularly, the method and composition is directed at controlling Hand-Foot Syndrome, a painful redness and cracking of the skin of the hands and feet which can occur with systemic treatment with 5-fluorouracil or a precursor thereof. Uracil ointment is applied to the skin of the hands and feet to prevent Hand-Foot Syndrome which can occur from systemic administration of 5-fluorouracil (or precursor thereof) as cancer treatment.

1 . A method for organ rescue from toxicity of chemotherapeutic treatment, the method comprising topically applying a rescue agent composition to an area of the body at risk of or exhibiting adverse side effects from the cancer treatment, the rescue agent operative to reverse the efficacy of the cancer treatment due to its high local concentration in the tissues to be rescued; the rescue agent being present in a negligible amount that systematically allows the chemotherapeutic treatment to attack cancer in an unabated manner.  
     
     
         2 . A method for organ rescue from toxicity of cancer treatment, the method comprising topically applying a composition comprising a rescue agent to an area of a human body at risk of or exhibiting adverse side effects from the cancer treatment.  
     
     
         3 . A method according to  claim 2  wherein the adverse side effects include Hand-Foot Syndrome.  
     
     
         4 . A method according to  claim 2  wherein the side effects are conditions selected from pain, numbness, tingling feeling, swelling, redness and combinations thereof in palms of a cancer patient's hands or soles of a cancer patient's feet.  
     
     
         5 . A method according to  claim 2  wherein the cancer treatment applies an anti-cancer active which is 5-fluorouracil or a precursor thereof.  
     
     
         6 . A method according to  claim 2  wherein the rescue agent is uracil.  
     
     
         7 . A method according to  claim 6  wherein the rescue agent is delivered in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier selected from the group comprising emollients, water, inorganic powders, foaming agents, emulsifiers, microspheres, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         8 . A method for reducing Hand-Foot Syndrome (HFS) resulting from a chemotherapeutic treatment through systemic treatment with 5-fluorouracil or a precursor thereof, the method comprising topically applying to a body surface affected by HFS or at risk of HFS, a composition comprising uracil in an effective amount to reduce the Hand-Foot Syndrome.  
     
     
         9 . A composition for treating Hand-Foot Syndrome comprising about 0.01 to about 60% by weight of uracil in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.  
     
     
         10 . A composition according to  claim 9  wherein the uracil is present in an amount from about 0.5 to about 5% by weight in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.  
     
     
         11 . A method of reducing stomititis due to 5FU or a 5FU precursor by applying a topical uracil composition to the oral/rectal mucosa.