Abstract

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors are currently one of the most important classes of cancer drugs, essentially because many kinases and regulators are molecules related to frequently mutated oncogenes and tumor suppressors. Many experiments and clinical data in different tumors show that better cancer therapy can be obtained by blocking several tumor cell biochemical pathways at once, accurately selecting critical targets and adjusting drug dosages for the best results.

Through our direct experience in experimental models of prostate cancer (PCa), we discuss in this review the issues of tyrosine kinase inhibition in neoplastic cells and illustrate the opportunities to extend cancer proliferation control to other key biological targets of clinical interest, aiming at the realization of better polypharmacology applications in cancer chemotherapy.

Briefly, in this review the main experimental evidences on the efficacy of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) on PCa are described, together with a reasoned analysis of biological data which may be useful for a general extension to other clinical areas of cancer multitargeted and possibly individualized polychemotherapy.

Keywords: Cancer therapy, chemotherapy, combination therapy, prostate cancer, tyrosine kinase inhibitors