Abstract: A compound or a salt thereof comprising a polyamine containing at least 2 electron-affinic groups is provided. In a preferred embodiment, the polyamine compound has the structure: wherein:A is a spacer; R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sub.3, and R.sub.4 are independently hydrogen, hydrocarbon, heterosubstituted hydrocarbon, heteroaryl, heterosubstituted heteroaryl, or an electron-affinic group containing substituent; and the compound contains at least one tertiary amine functionality having three substituents each of which independently contain at least one electron-affinic group or hydrophilic group.

Abstract: This invention relates to a method for making radiosensitizing diamines. This method comprises converting a compound having formula (5): ##STR1## to a compound having formula (6): ##STR2## using dimethyl sulfoxide activated by oxalyl chloride, and the treating the compound having formula (6) with a diamine reagent in the presence of an organic acid and a reducing agent.

Abstract: A compound comprising a diamine containing from 2-4 electron-affinic radiosensitizing functional groups or a salt thereof is provided. In a preferred embodiment the compound has the formula ##STR1## wherein A comprises a carbon chain having from about 2-10 carbons in the chain, R.sup.1, R.sup.2, R.sup.3, and R.sup.4 are H, or T, T is ##STR2## wherein A' comprises a carbon chain having from about 1-8 carbons in the chain, R.sup.5 is H, lower alkyl, or halo, and R.sup.6 is H, lower alkyl, halo or nitro, provided that at least one of R.sup.1 and R.sup.2, and at least one of R.sup.3 and R.sup.4 is T. Intermediates for, pharmaceutical compositions containing, methods for making and methods for using such compounds to radiosensitize and kill hypoxic tumor cells are also provided.