Can leukemia drug safely fight Kaposi’s sarcoma?
cet article est disponible en franais Infection with the virus HHV-8 (human herpes virus-8) can cause a disease called Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS). Signs of this disease are the growth of KS lesions on the skin; as well, lesions can merge, particularly inside the body, around lymphatic vessels. This can cause fluid build-up, swelling and pain. In some cases, particularly when KS affects important organs such as the lungs, it can become life threatening. By strengthening the immune system, the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has helped to make KS much less common and troublesome. However, not all cases of KS respond to HAART. In high-income countries, many options for the treatment of KS are available, from standard chemotherapy drugs to vitamin A-type creams (Panretin, alitretinoin). Recently, liposomal forms of chemotherapy such as Caelyx (liposomal doxorubicin) and Daunoxome (liposomal daunorubicin) have become available. These are supposed to be more active than their
