Eribulin is an anticancer drugtreat patients with metastatic breast cancer who have received at least two prior chemotherapy regimens for late-stage disease, including both anthracycline- and taxane-based chemotherapies. Eribulin is also being investigated for use in a variety of other solid tumors, including non-small cell lung cancer, prostate cancer and sarcoma. Structurally, eribulin is a fully synthetic macrocyclic ketone analogue of the marine sponge natural product halichondrin B. the latter being a potent naturally-occurring mitotic inhibitor with a unique mechanism of action found in the Halichondria genus of sponges. Eribulin is a mechanistically-unique inhibitor of microtubule dynamics, binding predominantly to a small number of high affinity sites at the plus ends of existing microtubules. Eribulin exerts its anticancer effects by triggering apoptosis of cancer cells following prolonged and irreversible mitotic blockade.
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