How does revlimid work?

If you’re here, you’ve probably heard the buzz about revlimid. Maybe your doctor has recommended it as part of your cancer treatment plan or maybe you’re just curious because its commercials are always popping up during Jeopardy! Either way, let’s talk about how this drug works.

Cancer: The Basic Science

Before we dive into revlimid specifically, let’s review some basic science behind cancer. Cancer is bad news bears because it’s essentially a group of cells that have gone rogue and started growing in an uncontrolled manner. These cells can spread throughout the body and destroy healthy tissues as they go.

One reason for this abnormal growth might be that these cells produce too much of a certain protein called TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor alpha). This protein helps regulate inflammation in the body but in excess amounts, it can cause trouble.

Enter thalidomide – an older medication originally developed to treat morning sickness in pregnant women but later found to help fight multiple myeloma (a type of bone marrow cancer) by blocking TNF-alpha production. However, since thalidomide isn’t the safest drug around (pregnancy-related birth defects led to strict regulations), scientists set out to create safer drugs with similar effects. That’s where lenalidomide comes in!

Welcome Revlimid!

That long-winded introduction brings us to our topic: revlimid, aka lenalidiomde – an oral medication used alone or combined with other therapies such as dexamethasone or rituximab/BR for lymphomas,pomalidoimade & desametasone for relapsed refractory myeloma; Interestingly enough, revlimd actually breaks down into thalomid once ingested by our bodies but since it binds more selectively onto certain TNF-alpha targets, it causes less negative side effects. Double win.

So how exactly does revlimid work its magic? Let’s break down the process:

Revlimid and TNF-Alpha

While thalidomide was known to block TNF-alpha production in general, revlimid has a bit more finesse, focusing on specific pathways related to cancerous cells. It basically activates an enzyme called cereblon which attaches itself onto certain proteins within these cells and marks them for destruction.

One crucial protein targeted is something you might have heard of – IL-2 (or interleukin-2). This protein helps immune cells fight off pathogens but can also help unhealthy T-cells grow out of control in certain cancers. By marking IL-2 with cereblon label & flagging them for destruction; revlimd degrades or reduces levels thus curtailing cellular growth.

But that’s not all. Revlimid has other targets too!

Angiogenesis: Cutting Off Blood Supply to Cancer Cells

Cancer needs a blood supply since it demands lots of nutrients/ oxygen present within the body ; so another target for lllegitimate immunityis cutting off its interior food source through Inhibiting angiogenesis “tumor vessel formation”: this prevents new vessels from forming around tumors by blocking ‘vascular endothelial growth factor’ (‘VEGF’), reducing blood supply/oxygen/nutrient influx,and thereby suppressing cancer cell survival rate .

More times than not, humans think adding more A’s makes everything better except when applied to AAA ratings like credit agencies offer businesses demanding protection against risk; anyhow back onto topic…Revilimd blocks VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 inhibiting further re-population while reducing malignancies ability to spread due thanks stopping opulence nutrition sources used previously.

Modulating Immune Responses

This gets technical quickly but essentially revlmed’s multiple targets effect T-cell immune function modulations by modifying ‘. Interferons” like ‘IfNy&alpha & Beta’ which bolster other defenses against cancer cells .

T-cells are one of our body’s key defenders, helping us fight off infections and pathogens. But in many cancers, T-cells aren’t up to the job – either because the cancer is too aggressive or it actively suppresses the immune response. Revlimid helps amp up these cells’ activity through modulating their activation levels.

This takes place in a few different ways including by changing cell surface markers or releasing chemical signals (like cytokines) that tell T-cells when to get cracking. It can also boost natural killer cells as well; revilimd does this without causing inflammation .

Stopping DNA Replication

Finally, sometimes you just need to go straight for the source: how do cancerous cells even keep replicating so quickly? The answer lies within their DNA machinery! As such “DNA Ligase IV”, an enzyme essential for repairing breaks during replication is inhibited thus limiting unwanted mutations & cellular proliferation rate.

The Takeaway

So there you have it folks—revlimid at its finest! While some may consider the specificities overwhelming ,the summary is that revlimd has more targetting specificity than thialodmide : thereby attaching and labeling certain proteinss found on malignant growths for destruction specifically while sparing our bodies from unwanted effects stemmed from Ihig-hitting treatments!

It’s important to remember that not every treatment works equally well for everyone, but we hope understanding how revlimid battles cancer might give patients and loved ones some reassurance about what’s going on inside those little capsules.

But if all else fails…maybe just chug a kale smoothie instead…works wonders too 😉

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