Dacarbazine
Brand Names
DTIC-Dome (There may be other brand names for this medication.)
How is it Administered?
Your medicine will be given by injection into a vein (intravenous or IV), which means it will be given through a tube placed in a vein, usually in your arm, wrist, hand or chest.
What is it Used For?
This drug is used to treat melanoma, Hodgkin’s disease, soft tissue sarcomas, neuroblastoma, medullary carcinoma of the thyroid, and (pancreatic) islet cell carcinoma/malignant glucagonoma.
How Does it Work?
Cancer is a group of diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control. Both normal and cancer cells go through cycles that include a resting phase, active growing phases, and division. Your chemotherapy schedule is based upon the type of cancer you have, the rate at which they divide, and the times when each drug is the most likely to be effective. This is why chemotherapy is typically given in cycles.
Dacarbazine is in a class of drugs known as alkalyting agents. Alkylating agents are most active in the resting phase of the cell. Dacarbazine acts as a "pro-drug" meaning your body needs to change it into its active (cancer- fighting) form.
