[Changes of lipid peroxidation parameters in children being treated for cancer].

Lipid peroxidation (LP) occurring in pediatric cancer patients receiving polychemotherapy has been investigated. Plasma level of malonic dialdehyde in children with retinoblastoma (Rtb) was found to drop while it remained unchanged in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). The treatment caused different changes in the red cell catalase levels in said groups: the enzyme concentration increased in the Rtb patients in the course of therapy and decreased in the ALL group.

[Treatment modalities and results of comprehensive therapy for extended retinoblastoma in children].

New procedures of laser therapy and chemotherapy have extended the scope of application of organ-saving treatment at advanced stages of retinoblastoma in childhood, thus making it possible to preserve the eye fully functional or cosmetic. Not having to perform such mutilating procedures as ophthalmectomy or eye socket exenteration contributes to psychological and physical rehabilitation. At the same time, as a comparison of the results of surgery carried out at initial stages and surgery-free treatment showed that palliative therapy is characterized by impressive rates of 5-year survival.

[Multimodality treatment for retinoblastoma in children].

A comprehensive programme was developed for the treatment of uni- and bilateral retinoblastoma in children with due regard to the disease stage by the TNM system. The use of the current sources of teletherapy and cyclic polychemotherapy expanded indications for organ-saving therapy at most common stages. Treatment by the program was performed in 202 patients, including 125 children with unilateral damage and 77 with bilateral damage.

[The possibilities for organ-preserving treatment in retinoblastoma in children].

One-hundred pediatric patients with uni- and bilateral retinoblastoma (140 tumors on the whole) received a combination of radio- and chemotherapy. Radiation was delivered by gamma-ray units and an electron accelerator. The single and total focal doses used were 1.

[Evolution of drug treatment of rhabdomyosarcoma in children].

Rhabdomyosarcoma is the most frequently occurring type of malignant solid tumors in children. The tumor site, aggressive growth, proneness to recurrence, metastatic spreading, and high neglect predetermine the negligible share of the surgical method in multimodality treatment of rhabdomyosarcomas. Of importance are the development and the use of different types and schemes of drug therapy which can be employed in combination with radiotherapy.

[Rhabdomyosarcoma in children].

Issues in diagnosis and complex treatment of pediatric rhabdomyosarcoma were studied in 198 patients with morphologically verified disease. Tumors most often developed in the genitourinary organs (36.6%), head and neck (37%) and--less frequently--on the trunk and extremities (26.

[Diagnosis and treatment of malignant tumors of the eye and orbit in children].

The paper deals with an evaluation of potentialities of diagnostic procedures (computer tomography and thermography) and complex treatment of retinoblastoma and sarcomas of the orbit. Electron- and 60CO teletherapy as components of complex treatment appeared to be superior to X-rays cutting down incidence of radiation injury and producing better results, including stage III. Also, these procedures allowed to avoid enucleation in stage I retinoblastoma and bilateral tumors.

[Radiotherapy in the multimodality treatment of retinoblastomas in children].

The results of multimodality therapy of 50 children with uni- or bilateral retinoblastoma were assessed. Gamma-beam therapy with the application of a special protective collimator and polychemotherapy were used as modalities supplementing eye extirpation. Some patients were irradiated prior to operation, the others following it.

[Thermography in the diagnosis of retinoblastoma in children].

The authors presented the results of thermographic examination of children with suspected retinoblastoma (30 primary examined patients and 30 patients examined to assess therapeutic efficacy). The results of the examination showed the relationship of the intensity and extent of the hyperthermia zone with tumor stage. The usefulness of the thermographic method for efficacy assessment was shown.

[Radionuclide and thermographic diagnosis of head and neck neoplasms].

Radionuclide and thermographic studies using 67Ga-citrate and 111In-bleomycin were performed in 129 patients with laryngeal cancer, chemodectoma of the neck, retinoblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma of the orbital and facial soft tissues and cancer of the tongue. Elevated amounts of the radiopharmaceutical drug were found in patients with tumors. In thermographic studies higher thermogenic activity corresponding to the tumor was noted.

Similar chromosomal abnormalities in several retinoblastomas.

The study of banded chromosomes of nine sporadic unilateral retinoblastomas revealed near diploid karyotypes with multiple numerical and (or) structural abnormalities in all tumors. An identical marker i(6p) was noted in cells of the modal class of six retinoblastomas. Extra copies of the short arm of chromosome 6 were observed in seven tumors: +i(6p) in 6 and +6q-in one.

[Chromosome disorders in retinoblastoma cells].

The karyotype of 7 unilateral retinoblastomas was studied. Loss or a gain of chromosomes and structural chromosomal changes were observed in all tumors. Modal chromosome number was pseudodiploid in four and near-diploid in three tumors.