Treatment of advanced ovarian cancer with surgery, chemotherapy, and consolidation of response by whole-abdominal radiotherapy.

Between April 1981 and June 1985, 195 patients with ovarian cancer, International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Stages IIB, IIC, III, and IV, entered a trial that consisted of surgery and chemotherapy with cisplatin (P) and melphalan (PAM) with or without hexamethylmelamine (HexaPAMP or PAMP regimens) every 4 weeks for 6 cycles. Because the intent was to study the outcome by treatment after evaluation of first-line chemotherapy, patients were evaluable only if the response was assessed by a second-look operation or if measurable disease progression was documented. One hundred fifty-eight patients (81%) were evaluable for response.

A clinical trial of aminoglutethimide in advanced postmenopausal breast carcinoma: low response in patients previously treated with medroxyprogesterone.

In an attempt to define the influence of prior hormonal treatments upon aminoglutethimide activity in advanced cancer of the breast, 42 heavily pretreated postmenopausal patients received aminoglutethimide, 4 X 250 mg daily, with hydrocortisone or cortisone. Twenty-six received high doses of medroxyprogesterone before entering this study. There was no significant difference in patients' characteristics with or without medroxyprogesterone pretreatment.

Sequential methotrexate and 5-FU in breast cancer resistant to the conventional application of these drugs.

Methotrexate and 5-FU were given sequentially with a 7-hour interval to 43 evaluable patients with heavily pretreated metastatic breast cancer. Partial remissions were seen in 12 patients (28%), indicating efficacy of this regimen in patients resistant to the conventional simultaneous application of these drugs.

Randomized trial of low- versus high-dose medroxyprogesterone acetate in the induction treatment of postmenopausal patients with advanced breast cancer.

In a randomized trial, 210 postmenopausal women with advanced measurable breast cancer were allocated to two different schedules of medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA). In the induction phase they received either 1,000 mg intramuscular (IM) MPA (high dose) daily or 500 mg IM MPA (low dose) twice weekly for four weeks. The maintenance treatment consisted of 500 mg MPA IM once weekly for all patients.

Epithelioid sarcoma.

Epithelioid sarcoma is a malignant soft tissue tumor characterized by its propensity to occur in the distal extremities as a nodular lesion and its slow and asymptomatic growth. Microscopically, the diagnosis is difficult. Therefore the interval between onset of symptoms and diagnosis averages one to three years.