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Table 3 Examples of drug repositioning applications in various disease areas and related therapeutics

From: A review of computational drug repositioning: strategies, approaches, opportunities, challenges, and directions

Disease area

Drug name/active ingredients

Original indication

New indication(s)

New indication(s) status

Depression

Duloxetine hydrochloride

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)

Neuropathic pain, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), osteoarthritis, and stress incontinence

Approved

Fluoxetine hydrochloride

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)

Approved

Sibutramine hydrochloride

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD)

Obesity

Approved

Neurology

Atomoxetine hydrochloride

Parkinson’s disease (PD)

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Approved

Ropinirole hydrochloride

Hypertension (HTN)

Parkinson’s disease (PD)

Approved

Non-neurology

Minoxidil

Hypertension (HTN)

Hair loss

Approved

Finasteride

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)

Hair loss

Approved

Zidovudine

Failed clinical trials for cancer

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)

Approved

Sildenafil

Angina

Erectile dysfunction (ED) and pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)

Approved

Cancer

Auranofin

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA)

Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST)

Approved

Imatinib

Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML)

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST)

Approved

Irinotecan hydrochloride

Colorectal cancer

Pancreatic cancer

Approved

Nelfinavir

Human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1)

Colorectal cancer, lung cancer, cervical cancer, pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, metastatic cancer

Investigational

 

Metformin hydrochloride

Type 2 diabetes (T2DM)

Breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, endometrial cancer, colorectal cancer, and esophageal cancer

Investigational

Trastuzumab

Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer

Metastatic breast cancer, gastric cancer, and early breast cancer

Approved

Sunitinib

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST)

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs)

Approved

Crizotinib

Clinical trials for anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL)

Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC)

Approved

Infectious

Thalidomide

Morning sickness (withdrawn)

Erythema nodosum leprosum (Leprosy)

Approved

Everolimus

Immunosuppressant

Pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (PNETs), renal cell carcinoma (RCC), and subependymal giant cell astrocytoma (SEGA)

Approved

Sirolimus

Organ rejection in patients receiving renal transplants

Malaria

Investigational

Rare and orphan

Alefacept

Chronic plaque psoriasis

Rejection in patients receiving allogeneic solid organ transplants

Investigational

Indium In-111 pentetreotide

Agent for the scintigraphic localization of primary and metastatic neuroendocrine tumors

Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs)

Investigational