Treatment of carcinoma in situ of the urethra with intraurethral instillations of bacillus Calmette-Guérin. Case report and review of literature.

We present the case of a 60-year-old man with carcinoma in situ of the urethra after previous successful radiotherapy of an invasive bladder tumor. Intraurethral instillations with bacillus Calmette-Guérin were given. In spite of initial success, recurrences developed after two courses of 12 intraurethral instillations, and radical surgery was performed.

Urethral sphincteric responses to sacral root stimulation.

Deafferentation and stimulation of sacral nerves in patients with complete spinal cord lesions is a good model to study the parasympathetic influence on urethral behavior. During intradural sacral deafferentation from S2 to S4/S5 in preparation for implantation of the Finetech-Brindley anterior sacral root stimulator, sacral roots were stimulated with 3 and 30 Hz and 3 and 10 V and the bladder and urethral responses noted. Stimulation of the posterior roots at 3 Hz gives a urethral relaxation without bladder contraction.

Intravesical BCG administration in the guinea pig. II. Immunohistochemical characterization of cellular infiltrate after one or two cycles of intravesical BCG.

The intravesical administration of bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is used as an adjuvant therapy after transurethral resection for superficial bladder cancer in man. The aim of this study was to characterize with monoclonal antibodies the cellular infiltrates in the bladder wall occurring after one or two cycles, each comprising six weekly intravesical BCG administrations in guinea pigs. BCG-RIVM and BCG-TICE were instilled once a week in undamaged bladders at weeks 1-6 and 11-16, respectively, and retained in the bladder for 1 h.

A new extra long acting depot preparation of the LHRH analogue Zoladex. First endocrinological and pharmacokinetic data in patients with advanced prostate cancer.

A new depot formulation of the LHRH analogue Zoladex (goserelin acetate) has been developed which releases the drug over a period of at least 3 months as judged by measurement of drug content in depots at intervals after insertion in male rats and by the suppression of oestrogen secretion and oestrus in female rats. This formulation is based on the lactide/glycolide polymer system used for the standard 1-month Zoladex depot, but the dose has been increased to 10.8 mg and the characteristics have been modified to enable a longer release of drug to be achieved.

Combined effects of tumor necrosis factor alpha and radiation in the treatment of renal cell carcinoma grown as radia spheroids.

We have investigated the antiproliferative effects of Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha (TNF) and radiation on a recently described rat renal cell tumor line grown as multicellular tumor spheroids (MTS). Treatment commenced when the spheroids had reached a diameter of 250 microns. TNF was diluted in the tissue culture medium in different concentrations, ranging from 250-1000 ng/ml.

The importance of prognostic factors in the individual treatment of patients with disseminated germ cell tumours.

Following chemotherapy for disseminated testicular cancer, 55 patients underwent surgery because of residual tumour. The histological findings were viable tumour in 12 patients, mature teratoma in 12 and fibrosis and/or necrosis in 31. Retroperitoneal abdominal masses were evaluated radiographically before and after chemotherapy.

In vivo effects of high energy shock waves on urological tumors: an evaluation of treatment modalities.

We have studied the effect of high energy shock waves (HESW) alone or in combination with cytotoxic drugs on the growth of urological tumors. The effects of HESW on kidney or prostatic tumors depend largely on the tumor line used. In the rapidly growing prostate tumor no antitumor effect was evident in vivo, but in vitro examination of the in vivo shocked cells showed that the clonogenic potential of HESW treated cells was inhibited.

Some limitations of the radioisotope bone scan in patients with metastatic prostatic cancer. A subanalysis of EORTC trial 30853. The EORTC Urological Group.

This article reviews the serial bone scans of 149 of 327 patients entered into a randomized prospective trial comparing orchidectomy versus zoladex and flutamide in patients with metastatic prostatic cancer. Attention is drawn to the difficulty of evaluating the response rate and of the importance of tumor load in determining survival. The use of sequential bone scans once the diagnosis of metastatic disease has been confirmed is of questionable value as the scans are expensive and contribute little to the further management of the patient in the absence of symptoms requiring relief.

Analysis of prognostic factors in disseminated prostatic cancer. An update. Dutch Southeastern Urological Cooperative Group.

A statistical analysis of prognostic factors in 175 patients with hormonally treated disseminated prostatic cancer was done. The prognostic significance of performance status (PS), hemoglobin (Hb), alkaline phosphatase (Alk P), and testosterone was assessed with a univariate analysis. The authors did not find significant prognostic value in age, tumor size or grade, prostatic acid phosphatase, and prostate-specific antigen in these patients.

In vivo antiproliferative effects of gamma-interferon and tumor necrosis factor alpha in a rat renal cell carcinoma model system.

We have investigated the antiproliferative activities of recombinant rat-gamma-interferon and recombinant human tumor necrosis factor alpha in a rat renal cell carcinoma model system. The tumor was transplanted subcutaneously, the drugs were administered peritumorally. Gamma-interferon treatment starting two days after tumor implantation resulted in a dose-dependent growth inhibiting effect.

[The treatment of kidney and ureteral stones using a second-generation kidney stone lithotriptor].

In January 1988 a Siemens Lithostar lithotriptor was installed in the Radboud University Hospital in Nijmegen. Over 1600 treatments have been performed since. The results of 582 treatments of the first 500 patients are discussed.

[Transrectal echography of the prostate and its value in screening for prostatic carcinoma].

In order to assess the value of ultrasonography in the diagnosis of prostatic carcinoma we investigated 130 men, above the age of 50, with both ultrasound and rectal examination in a prospective study. Both investigations were performed independently from each other. When either ultrasonography or rectal examination indicated the presence of malignancy a transrectal prostatic biopsy was performed.

Presence of interleukin-2 in urine of superficial bladder cancer patients after intravesical treatment with bacillus Calmette-Guérin.

Urine samples were obtained from patients with superficial bladder cancer after immunotherapy with bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG). The patients were repeatedly (once a week for 6 consecutive weeks) treated with intravesical administration of approximately 5 X 10(8) culturable particles of BCG. Some patients received more than six BCG instillations.

Oncogene expression in prostate cancer.

Molecular biology has proven to be instrumental in studies on the onset and progression of cancer. Reasoning that tumorigenesis can be considered as a multistep process in which a normal cell gradually escapes from its delicately regulated growth pattern, one might describe this process in terms of gene expression. The group of genes that are good candidates for investigation in this context are the proto-oncogenes.

Use of intravesical bacillus Calmette-Guérin in the treatment of superficial transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder: an overview.

Since 1976 superficial bladder cancer is treated with intravesical instillations of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG). The results with BCG are superior to other intravesical chemotherapeutics, both in superficial tumors and carcinoma in situ. BCG probably acts as a nonspecific potentiator of the immune system.

Extragonadal germ cell tumor invading the prostate.

To our knowledge, only 3 patients with an extragonadal germ cell tumor of the prostate have been described in the literature until now. We here present a patient with a germ cell tumor arising in the retroperitoneum, invading the prostate, which was successfully treated by a combination of chemotherapy and nonmutilating surgery.

A new longer-acting LHRH analog depot: preliminary results of a Dutch open phase II clinical study on a 10.8 mg Zoladex 3-monthly depot.

A new longer-acting depot formulation containing 10.8 mg Zoladex was administered subcutaneously without anesthetic to 35 patients with advanced carcinoma of the prostate. Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic data show that following a transient elevation in serum LH and testosterone, the levels of both hormones decrease.

Phase I/II study of recombinant interferon alpha and gamma in advanced progressive renal-cell carcinoma.

In vitro studies have documented the synergistic antiviral and antiproliferative activity of recombinant interferon alpha (rIFN alpha) and rIFN gamma. Furthermore, rIFN gamma is a strong immunomodulator with optimal effects at a relative low dose (0.1 mg/m2).

Effects of high-energy shock waves combined with biological response modifiers or Adriamycin on a human kidney cancer xenograft.

We have studied the effect of high-energy shock waves (HESW) alone or in combination with biological response modifiers (BRMs) or Adriamycin on the growth of the NU-1 human kidney cancer xenograft. When HESW are administered repeatedly (four sessions of 800 shock waves on days 0, 2, 4 and 6) a prolonged delay in tumor growth was found compared with that following a single administration. This effect was temporary, and several days after stopping the HESW administration the tumor regained its original growth potential (same doubling time).