The present invention is directed to novel anti-cancer compounds and methods of treating and/or inhibiting cancer in patients, including metastatic cancer, recurrent cancer and drug resistant cancers, including multiple drug resistant cancers. Compounds according to the present invention provide anti-cancer activity, at least in part, by virtue of their nucleotide intercalating activity through the use of analogs of (−)lomaiviticin A, a potent anticancer agent which exhibits cytotoxicity through its principal mechanism of cleavage and to a lesser extent, its intercalation of cellular polynucleotides, especially DNA. In additional embodiments, compounds according to the present invention are also conjugated and/or linked to other bioactive agents, especially agents which selectively target cancer cells (cancer cell targeting moiety or CCTM) to target and increase the delivery of the anticancer agent to the cancer cell. These targeting agents include folate receptor-targeted moieties, other cancer binding moieties such as PMSA binding moieties as otherwise described herein and antibodies, including single chain variable fragment antibodies (scFv antibodies). Pharmaceutical compositions based upon these novel compounds are also disclosed pursuant to the present invention. Methods of treating, inhibiting and/or reducing the likelihood of cancer, including metastatic and recurrent cancer and drug resistant, including multiple drug resistant cancer in a patient are also disclosed.
