DIAMINDERIVAT OCH DERAS ANVAENDNING I SAMBAND MED ONKOLOGI

Compounds of formula wherein R and R , which may be the same or different, each represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group containing 1 to 5 carbon atoms, or an optionally substituted aryl or aralkyl group, substituents being selected from halogen atoms, alkoxy and alkyl groups containing 1 to 5 carbon atoms, said alkyl groups in turn being optionally halo-substituted; R and R , which may be the same or different, each represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl group containing 1 to 5 carbon atoms, or an optionally substituted aryl or aralkyl group, substituents being as indicated above, or R and R together represent an alkylene group containing 2 or 3 carbon atoms; m and p, which may be the same or different each represents a number from 0 to 3; n represents the number 2 or 3; and X represents a group of formula R4_x-CO-, R4_x-COO-, R4_x-CONH-, R4_x-NHCO-, or R4_x-O- and Y represents a group of formula R4_y-CO-, R4_y-COO-, R4_y-CONH-, R4_y-NHCO-, or R4_y-O- in which groups R4_y and R4_x, which may be the same or different, each represents an optionally substituted aryl, aralkyl or aryloxyalkyl group, substituents being as indicated above, and the alkyl moiety in the aralkyl and aryloxyalkyl groups containing 1 to 5 carbon atoms and being optionally substituted by a cycloalkyl group containing 3 to 8 carbon atoms; and physiologically acceptable acid addition salts thereof have been found to be active in restoring drug-sensitivity to cancer cells that have become multidrug-resistant. They can, therefore, be used as adjuvants in oncology, and they can be administered simultaneously, separately or at intervals in combination with one or more conventional anti-cancer agents for treating malignant tumours and corresponding metastases. Some of these compounds and salts which have not been previously described as well as their manufacture and pharmaceutical compositions containing them are also disclosed.