Combining proteasome with cell cycle inhibitors: a dual attack potentially applicable to multiple hematopoietic malignancies

Standard chemotherapy regimens are curative in only a subset of hematological malignancies, such as childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and certain subgroups of Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Moreover, the molecular targets of many cytotoxic chemotherapeutic agents, despite intensive investigation, remain uncertain. Because of a narrow therapeutic index for cytotoxic agents, most regimens combine different classes of agents with non-overlapping toxicities. Nevertheless, significant toxicities are observed.