Acute myeloid leukemia induction with cladribine: Outcomes by age and leukemia risk.

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) induction traditionally includes seven days of cytarabine and three days of an anthracycline (7 + 3). Because of evidence of increased efficacy of cladribine combined with this regimen, we conducted a retrospective analysis of 107 AML patients treated with idarubicin, cytarabine and cladribine (IAC) at our institution. Complete remission (CR) occurred in 71%, with overall response of 79%.

High-Dose Interleukin-2 (HD IL-2) Therapy Should Be Considered for Treatment of Patients with Melanoma Brain Metastases.

A retrospective review was performed on patients with stable melanoma brain metastases treated with HD IL-2 therapy (720,000 IU/kg per dose intravenously; 14 doses, 2 cycles per course, maximum 2 courses) from January 1999 to June 2011 at Saint Louis University. There were 5 men and 3 women; median age was 52.2 years (26.

Modified array-based comparative genomic hybridization detects cryptic and variant PML-RARA rearrangements in acute promyelocytic leukemia lacking classic translocations.

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is typically defined at the molecular level by a reciprocal translocation of the promyelocytic leukemia (PML) and retinoic acid receptor α (RARA) genes. An accurate diagnosis of APL is critical for appropriate choice of therapy and prognostic assessment. Cryptic and variant rearrangements in APL are discoverable by a variety of molecular methods including fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, or gene sequencing.

"Hyper-warburgism," a cause of asymptomatic hypoglycemia with lactic acidosis in a patient with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Context: In cancer cells, the Warburg effect is defined as the avid consumption of glucose through the glycolytic pathway with concomitant lactate production, even under aerobic conditions.

Case: We report a 64-yr-old woman who was referred to our institution for pancytopenia and hypoglycemia. Physical examination demonstrated hepatosplenomegaly and petechiae.

C-MOPP: the forgotten regimen plus Rituximab for untreated and relapsed follicular lymphoma.

C-MOPP is a chemotherapy regimen for the treatment of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Because rituximab improves results in B-cell NHL, we added rituximab to C-MOPP, giving it the term C-MOPP-R. We retrospectively report the results of C-MOPP-R treatment for follicular lymphoma at Saint Louis University Cancer Center from 2000-2009.

Procarbazine-induced hepatotoxicity: case report and review of the literature.

Procarbazine hydrochloride is an oral alkylating agent primarily used as a component of chemotherapy regimens for Hodgkin's lymphoma, as well as in regimens for primary central nervous system lymphoma and high-grade gliomas. Although the prescribing information for procarbazine lists hepatic dysfunction as a potential adverse reaction, we found only one published report with a probable link between procarbazine and liver injury. We describe a 65-year-old man who developed liver injury due to procarbazine during salvage chemotherapy for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

Spontaneous bilateral pneumothorax in metastatic renal cell carcinoma on sunitinib therapy.

Bilateral spontaneous pneumothorax is a rare occurrence in patients with both primary and metastatic lung cancer. Pneumothorax occurring as a complication of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) inhibitor therapy has not been previously described in the medical literature. Sunitinib malate is a VEGFR inhibitor approved for the treatment of advanced renal cell carcinoma.

Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and cerebral venous sinus thrombosis: case report and literature review.

Background: Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT)-related cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) has been described in 10 prior case reports in the English language medical literature. We report the first case of low molecular weight HIT-related CVST with detailed clinical course and novel therapeutic approach.

Methods: A 69-year-old woman presented with a focal seizure after total hip replacement.