Combination therapy increases the efficacy of docetaxel, vinblastine and tamoxifen in cancer cells

Abstract

Introduction: Developing novel strategies to increase the efficacy of chemotherapy is an urgent need. We investigated the impact of combination therapy with docetaxel, or vinblastine with tamoxifen in inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 and H1299 cells. Materials and Methods: Cell proliferation was assessed by MTT assay and the percentage of apoptotic cells was measured using DAPI staining. Statistical Analysis: Statistical analysis was performed by one-way ANOVA using SPSS software. Results: Vinblastine or docetaxel induced higher percentage of apoptosis in MDA-MB-231 cells than H1299 cells (P < 0.05). Tamoxifen exhibited the highest percentage of cell death in H1299 cells (P < 0.05). Treatment of both cell lines with combination of docetaxel and vinblastine or tamoxifen showed enhanced apoptotic and anti-proliferative effects (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Combination therapy of breast and lung cancer cell lines using docetaxel or vinblastine with tamoxifen synergistically increases the anti-proliferative affect of single agents.