{"entity":{"id":"bleomycin","kind":"drug","name":"Bleomycin","aka":[],"tldr":"Bleomycin is the 'B' in BEP for testicular cancer and ABVD for Hodgkin lymphoma; its unique danger is scarring of the lungs, so lung function is monitored and it is often dropped when safe.","summary":"Approved 1973. BEP (testicular; omitted in EP for good-risk patients with lung risk), ABVD (Hodgkin; omitted after negative interim PET in RATHL), Kaposi sarcoma (bleomycin-vincristine in Africa), sclerotherapy of lymphatic malformations and pleurodesis, electrochemotherapy for cutaneous tumours. Cumulative dose limit ~400 units; pulmonary toxicity 10%, fatal in 1-2%.","status":"approved","asOf":"2026-09-08","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleomycin","links":[{"label":"Label (DailyMed)","url":"https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/search.cfm?labeltype=all&query=bleomycin"}],"tags":["gap-fill","generic","who-essential"],"related":[],"cancers":["testicular","hodgkin-lymphoma","kaposi-sarcoma","seminoma","non-seminoma"],"sections":[],"technologies":["cytotoxic-chemotherapy","electrochemotherapy"],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":["ild"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"brand":"Blenoxane","modality":"Glycopeptide antibiotic (DNA-cleaving)","mechanism":"Chelates iron and generates free radicals that cause single- and double-strand DNA breaks; inactivated by bleomycin hydrolase, which is scarce in lung and skin (fibrosis, hyperpigmentation).","approvals":[{"region":"US","year":1973,"indication":"Squamous cell carcinomas, Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, testicular carcinoma, malignant pleural effusion"}],"mechanismSteps":[],"toxicity":[],"access":[],"regulatoryEvents":[]},"route":"/drugs/bleomycin/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"advanced-stage-classical-hodgkin-lymphoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Advanced-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma (stage III to IV)","route":"/cancers/advanced-stage-classical-hodgkin-lymphoma/"},{"id":"testicular-choriocarcinoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Choriocarcinoma of the testis","route":"/cancers/testicular-choriocarcinoma/"},{"id":"craniopharyngioma","kind":"cancer","name":"Craniopharyngioma","route":"/cancers/craniopharyngioma/"},{"id":"early-stage-classical-hodgkin-lymphoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Early-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma (stage I to II)","route":"/cancers/early-stage-classical-hodgkin-lymphoma/"},{"id":"embryonal-carcinoma-testis","kind":"cancer","name":"Embryonal carcinoma of the testis","route":"/cancers/embryonal-carcinoma-testis/"},{"id":"extragonadal-germ-cell-tumour","kind":"cancer","name":"Extragonadal germ cell tumour","route":"/cancers/extragonadal-germ-cell-tumour/"},{"id":"paediatric-germ-cell-tumours","kind":"cancer","name":"Germ cell tumours of childhood and adolescence (extracranial and CNS)","route":"/cancers/paediatric-germ-cell-tumours/"},{"id":"hiv-associated-lymphoma","kind":"cancer","name":"HIV-associated (AIDS-related) lymphomas","route":"/cancers/hiv-associated-lymphoma/"},{"id":"hodgkin-lymphoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Hodgkin lymphoma","route":"/cancers/hodgkin-lymphoma/"},{"id":"kaposi-sarcoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Kaposi sarcoma","route":"/cancers/kaposi-sarcoma/"},{"id":"mediastinal-germ-cell-tumour","kind":"cancer","name":"Mediastinal germ cell tumour","route":"/cancers/mediastinal-germ-cell-tumour/"},{"id":"non-seminoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Non-seminomatous germ cell tumour","route":"/cancers/non-seminoma/"},{"id":"retroperitoneal-germ-cell-tumour","kind":"cancer","name":"Retroperitoneal germ cell tumour","route":"/cancers/retroperitoneal-germ-cell-tumour/"},{"id":"seminoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Seminoma","route":"/cancers/seminoma/"},{"id":"testicular","kind":"cancer","name":"Testicular germ cell tumours","route":"/cancers/testicular/"},{"id":"yolk-sac-tumour-postpubertal","kind":"cancer","name":"Yolk sac tumour of the testis, postpubertal type","route":"/cancers/yolk-sac-tumour-postpubertal/"}],"technology":[{"id":"cytotoxic-chemotherapy","kind":"technology","name":"Cytotoxic chemotherapy","route":"/technologies/cytotoxic-chemotherapy/"},{"id":"electrochemotherapy","kind":"technology","name":"Electrochemotherapy","route":"/technologies/electrochemotherapy/"},{"id":"electrochemotherapy-devices","kind":"technology","name":"Electrochemotherapy devices (Cliniporator)","route":"/technologies/electrochemotherapy-devices/"},{"id":"rejuv-recovery-cumulative-dose","kind":"technology","name":"The cumulative dose that decides whether it comes back","route":"/technologies/rejuv-recovery-cumulative-dose/"}],"term":[{"id":"abvd-beacopp","kind":"term","name":"ABVD, BEACOPP and BrECADD (Hodgkin lymphoma regimens)","route":"/terms/abvd-beacopp/"},{"id":"ild","kind":"term","name":"Interstitial lung disease (ILD) / pneumonitis","route":"/terms/ild/"},{"id":"lymphoma-tx-hodgkin-late-effects","kind":"term","name":"Late effects of Hodgkin lymphoma treatment, and the follow-up that answers them","route":"/terms/lymphoma-tx-hodgkin-late-effects/"},{"id":"lymphoma-tx-regimen-alphabet","kind":"term","name":"The lymphoma regimen alphabet: R-CHOP, pola-R-CHP, DA-EPOCH-R, ABVD, BEACOPP and the rest","route":"/terms/lymphoma-tx-regimen-alphabet/"}],"trial":[{"id":"actg-a5263","kind":"trial","name":"ACTG A5263/AMC 066","route":"/trials/actg-a5263/"},{"id":"agct1531","kind":"trial","name":"AGCT1531","route":"/trials/agct1531/"},{"id":"ahl2011","kind":"trial","name":"AHL2011","route":"/trials/ahl2011/"},{"id":"ahod1331","kind":"trial","name":"AHOD1331","route":"/trials/ahod1331/"},{"id":"nct00002872","kind":"trial","name":"Bleomycin, Doxycycline, or Talc in Treating Patients With Malignant Pleural Effusions","route":"/trials/nct00002872/"},{"id":"nct05395962","kind":"trial","name":"Electrochemotherapy With Carboplatinum Plus Bleomycin Versus Bleomycin Alone in Vulvar Cancer","route":"/trials/nct05395962/"},{"id":"eortc-h10","kind":"trial","name":"EORTC/LYSA/FIL H10","route":"/trials/eortc-h10/"},{"id":"getug-13","kind":"trial","name":"GETUG 13","route":"/trials/getug-13/"},{"id":"hd10","kind":"trial","name":"GHSG HD10","route":"/trials/hd10/"},{"id":"hd16","kind":"trial","name":"GHSG HD16","route":"/trials/hd16/"},{"id":"hd18","kind":"trial","name":"GHSG HD18","route":"/trials/hd18/"},{"id":"radar-hodgkin","kind":"trial","name":"RADAR","route":"/trials/radar-hodgkin/"},{"id":"rathl","kind":"trial","name":"RATHL","route":"/trials/rathl/"}],"paper":[{"id":"paper-actg-a5263-kaposi-sarcoma-resource-limited-krown-lancet-2020","kind":"paper","name":"ACTG A5263/AMC 066: three chemotherapy regimens with antiretroviral therapy for advanced AIDS-associated Kaposi sarcoma in resource-limited settings","route":"/key-papers/paper-actg-a5263-kaposi-sarcoma-resource-limited-krown-lancet-2020/"},{"id":"paper-eortc-h10-pet-adapted-early-hodgkin-jco-2017","kind":"paper","name":"Early positron emission tomography response-adapted treatment in stage I and II Hodgkin lymphoma: final results of the randomized EORTC/LYSA/FIL H10 trial","route":"/key-papers/paper-eortc-h10-pet-adapted-early-hodgkin-jco-2017/"},{"id":"paper-ahl2011-pet-adapted-treatment-advanced-hodgkin-lancet-oncol-2019","kind":"paper","name":"PET-adapted treatment for newly diagnosed advanced Hodgkin lymphoma (AHL2011): a randomised, multicentre, non-inferiority, phase 3 study","route":"/key-papers/paper-ahl2011-pet-adapted-treatment-advanced-hodgkin-lancet-oncol-2019/"},{"id":"paper-ghsg-hd18-pet-guided-escalated-beacopp-lancet-2017","kind":"paper","name":"PET-guided treatment in patients with advanced-stage Hodgkin's lymphoma (HD18): final results of an open-label, international, randomised phase 3 trial by the German Hodgkin Study Group","route":"/key-papers/paper-ghsg-hd18-pet-guided-escalated-beacopp-lancet-2017/"},{"id":"paper-ghsg-hd16-pet-guided-early-favourable-hodgkin-jco-2019","kind":"paper","name":"Positron emission tomography-guided treatment in early-stage favorable Hodgkin lymphoma: final results of the international, randomized phase III HD16 trial by the German Hodgkin Study Group","route":"/key-papers/paper-ghsg-hd16-pet-guided-early-favourable-hodgkin-jco-2019/"},{"id":"paper-williams-bep-vs-pvb-nejm-1987","kind":"paper","name":"Treatment of disseminated germ cell tumours with cisplatin, bleomycin and either vinblastine or etoposide","route":"/key-papers/paper-williams-bep-vs-pvb-nejm-1987/"}],"idea":[{"id":"lymphoma-ev-radiotherapy-free-early-hodgkin","kind":"idea","name":"A radiotherapy-free cure for early Hodgkin lymphoma that actually holds","route":"/ideas/lymphoma-ev-radiotherapy-free-early-hodgkin/"}]}}