Nomenclature for Platinum Antitumor Compounds

Abstract

Throughout this symposium book and also in the literature a variety of (often trivial) names and abbreviations have been used to describe or indicate platinum compounds. To allow proper registration and classification of such compounds, and also to avoid confusion or misunderstanding in referring to these compounds, it is required to have and use a clear and concise nomenclature. Both IUB (International Union of Biochemistry) and IUPAC (International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry) have nomenclature commissions that deal with this subject. This paper will briefly summarize the rules that lead to IUPAC-recommended names, and will also list most of the trivial names and abbreviations that have been used so far for a variety of platinum anti-tumor compounds.