Severe thrombocytopenia induced by a single infusion of trastuzumab.

We report a case of severe thrombocytopenia related to adjuvant trastuzumab use. Less than 24 hours after administration of her first dose of single-agent trastuzumab, the patient was admitted to the hospital with a platelet count of 2 x 10(9)/L. Trastuzumab is being increasingly used and, to our knowledge, severe thrombocytopenia has not yet been reported as an adverse event.

Vinorelbine and infusional 5-fluorouracil in anthracycline and taxane pre-treated metastatic breast cancer.

Aims: To evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of a combination of intravenous vinorelbine and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) given by continuous infusion in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer previously treated with anthracyclines and taxanes.

Materials And Methods: Sixty-one patients with metastatic breast cancer were treated with intravenous vinorelbine 30 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8 of each 21-day cycle together with 5-FU 200 mg/m2/day by continuous infusion. All had previously been treated with an anthracycline and 41% had also been previously treated with a taxane.

Recovery of fertility 14 years following radiotherapy and chemotherapy for testicular tumour.

We report a patient who developed a left-sided malignant teratoma with ipsilateral para-aortic nodes at the age of 20 years. Following treatment with left orchidectomy, abdominal and pelvic radiotherapy and chemotherapy, he was found to be azoospermic. More than 14 years after treatment, he regained his fertility.

Carcinoma of the penis: a retrospective review of treatment with iridium mould and external beam irradiation.

This paper is a retrospective review of the treatment of carcinoma of the penis with radiotherapy alone over a 30-year period from 1960-1990 at The Royal London Hospital. During that time, 44 patients aged 31-85 years (mean 63) underwent treatment in our department, all of whom had histologically proven squamous carcinoma. Patients initially treated by surgery and those treated with combined surgery and radiotherapy were excluded from analysis.

Use of deflector shields to reduce intramammary infection by preventing impacts on the teat ends of cows during machine milking.

A series of short duration experiments has shown that infections caused by the milking machine or the way in which it is used can be controlled by fitting deflector shields in the teatcup liners. This not only provides a simple means of controlling such infections, but demonstrates that they result from penetration of the streak canal of the teat by contaminated milk particles impacting on the teat ends.