For a chemotherapeutic drug to be useful for treating cancer cells, which of the following is most desirable?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The most desirable characteristic for a chemotherapeutic drug is to target only rapidly dividing cells. This is because cancer cells have faster cell division rates than normal cells, and selective targeting of rapidly dividing cells can help minimize damage to healthy cells. It is not desirable for the drug to limit all apoptosis or only attack density-dependent cells as this may not target cancer cells specifically, but also normal cells. Drugs that do not affect metabolically active cells are not helpful as cancer cells are metabolically active.

For a Chemotherapeutic Drug to Be Useful for Treating Cancer