Role of antiangiogenic agents in the treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer

Abstract

This review covers the latest data on antiangiogenic agents used in patients with colorectal cancer. In this article, we describe drugs that have already been included into therapy regimens for colorectal cancer and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) inhibitors that have been approved for other indications. Targeted drugs with a similar mechanism of action that are currently in clinical trials are discussed separately. VEGF-inhibitors are one of the main groups of targeted drugs for colorectal cancer with an acceptable toxicity profile, which can be used both in combination with chemotherapeutic agents and as maintenance treatment. Moreover, these drugs are not dependent on mutational status, which is a significant advantage.

Keywords

• colorectal cancer
• rectal cancer
• targeted therapy
• vegf inhibitors