The invention includes a new combination therapy of human melanoma cancer using an innovative combination of known drugs - taxanes and simvastatin (working name of the drug SIMTAX). This is an example of molecularly targeted therapy for ABC transporters, with the innovative use of approved drugs for the treatment of human melanoma.
To meet the clinical needs, sciemtist from Jagiellonian Univeristy has developed a combination therapy using the "old" cytostatics - TAKSOL (docetaxel or paclitaxel) (registered for use in melanoma with cisplatin and melphalan) and the anti-lipidemic drug - SIMVSTATIN. This combination is a new active drug (SIMTAX) that effectively reduces the division of melanoma cells regardless of the stage of progression (radial, metastatic or metastatic). They synergistically induce mitotic catastrophe apoptosis in melanoma cells, and the effect is dose-dependent. Simvastatin may only be administered with a taxane or with a regimen containing a taxane. This allows for the reduction of effective doses of the taxanes in the presence of simvastatin. It eliminates the need for the ineffective cisplatin-taxol regimen or other taxane regimens to which the tumor rapidly becomes resistant to cancer. Our proposal significantly reduces the overall toxicity associated with the "old" regimen by selectively collecting and retaining a significant amount of taxanes in human melanoma tumor cells. As a result, the tumor does not become resistant to taxanes. Independently, the composition of the invention is suitable for use in the treatment of thromboembolic complications associated with this tumor and in the alleviation of symptoms associated with a neoplastic disease. At the same time, we have shown that the taxane / simvastatin combination has no effect on healthy human (non-cancerous) fibroblasts. We are the first to have comprehensive data proving the mechanism related to the retention of taxanes in human melanoma cells due to the action of simvastatin.