VEMURAFENIB BASED HYDROGELS AS POTENTIAL TOPICAL BIOFORMULATIONS FOR THE TREATMENT OF MELANOMA

MELANOMA (Abstract): One of the most aggressive forms of cancer, cutaneous melanoma, occurs as a result of uncontrolled division of melan ocytes.The efficacy of the used treatments can be diminished in terms of tar geted action, increased toxicity and resistance to treatment.In the present study we have investigated an antitumor agent from the BRAFV600 inhibitor class, namely vemurafenib, currently approved by the FDA and EMA for oral administration only.Due to its high toxicity, we evaluated the possibility of cutaneous administration for the treatment of early-stage melanoma or postsurgical resection.Materials and methods: In that regard, we considered hydrogels based on chitosan, -cyclodextrin and polyvinyl alcohol in various concentration ratios from which, after a careful analysis of the previously published data, we chose two matrices to be loaded with vemurafenib.Results: The inclusion complexes were obtained by PVA gelation through repeated freeze-thaw cycles and subsequently characterized by FTIR, scanning electron microscopy and swelling capacity at various pH and temperature values.Conclusions: The obtained results were promising, as the synthesized formulations proved their capability of controlled release for vemurafenib.