Thiotepa (INN ), sold under the brand name Tepadina among others, is an anti-cancer medication. Thiotepa is an organophosphorus compound with the formula (C2H4N)3PS.

Medical uses

Thiotepa is indicated for use in combination with other chemotherapy agents to treat cancer. This can be with or without total body irradiation (TBI), as a conditioning treatment prior to allogeneic or autologous hematopoietic progenitor cell transplantation (HPCT) in hematological diseases in adults and children. These diseases include Hodgkin's disease and leukaemia. Thiotepa is also used with high-dose chemotherapy with HPCT support to treat certain solid tumors in adult and children. Thiotepa is used in the palliation of many neoplastic diseases. The best results are found in the treatment of adenocarcinoma of the breast, adenocarcinoma of the ovary, papillary thyroid cancer and bladder cancer. Thiotepa is used to control intracavitary effusions caused by serosal neoplastic deposits.

Intravesical use

Thiotepa is used as intravesical chemotherapy in bladder cancer.

Side effects

The main side effect of thiotepa is bone marrow suppression resulting in leukopenia, thrombocytopenia and anemia.

History

Thiotepa was developed by the American Cyanamid company in the early 1950s and reported to media outlets in 1953. In 1959, thiotepa was registered with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a drug therapy for several solid cancers. In January 2007, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) designated thiotepa as an orphan drug. In April 2007, the United States FDA designated thiotepa as a conditioning treatment for use prior to hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In June 2024, the FDA approved a ready-to-dilute liquid formulation of thiotepa to treat breast and ovarian cancer.