Phase II study of weekly low-dose 4'-epi-doxorubicin in advanced postmenopausal breast cancer.

A phase II study of 4'-epi-doxorubicin in 39 fully evaluable patients with advanced postmenopausal breast cancer has been performed. The patients received 20 mg of 4'-epi-doxorubicin iv weekly, irrespective of surface area. This dose schedule follows previous work with doxorubicin, showing good therapeutic effect with very low toxicity.

A phase III trial comparing prednimustine (LEO 1031) to chlorambucil plus prednisolone in advanced breast cancer.

Prednimustine is an ester of chlorambucil and prednisolone. The drug has had some activity in experimental as well as in human tumors, including breast cancer. The objective of the current study is to compare the clinical effectiveness and toxicity of prednimustine with its components of chlorambucil plus prednisolone, and to compare the clinical effectiveness and toxicity of a continuous treatment with an intermittent one.

Current status of high dose progestin treatment in advanced breast cancer.

Progestins, especially high dose medroxyprogesterone acetate, are receiving renewed attention in treatment of advanced breast cancer. The trials reviewed here indicate that such regimens may be as effective as tamoxifen in postmenopausal unselected cases, and that they may be effective as second-line treatment in patients resistant to tamoxifen and/or to cytotoxic chemotherapy.

A phase II study of combined 5-fluorouracil and mitomycin C in advanced breast cancer.

In a Phase II study, 50 patients with advanced breast cancer were treated with a combination of 5-fluorouracil (1000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 2) and mitomycin C (6 mg/m2 on day 2) (FuMi regimen). The courses were repeated every third to sixth week. Although 35 patients had previously received combination chemotherapy and 40 patients had received endocrine treatment, objective responses were obtained in 29 patients (six complete, 23 partial).

A weekly schedule of low-dose doxorubicin in treatment of advanced breast cancer.

A phase II study of weekly low-dose doxorubicin (6 to 12 mg/m2) showed it to be an effective, well-tolerated therapy in advanced breast cancer. Although most of the 34 patients studied had been clinically resistant to previous endocrine measures and/or other kinds of chemotherapy, had a median score of 60 on Karnofsky's index, and had predominantly visceral metastases, an objective response was obtained in 20 of 34 patients (four complete remissions, 16 partial remissions) for a median duration of 12+ months. Ten patients experienced no change in their condition for three to 12 months (median, six months).

Remission by chemotherapy of the Eaton-Lambert myasthenic syndrome in a patient with small cell bronchogenic carcinoma.

A 70-year-old man developed symptoms compatible with the Eaton-Lambert syndrome, and a small cell bronchogenic carcinoma was diagnosed. During treatment with cytostatics his muscular strength was restored and the lung tumour as well as the electrophysiologic findings characteristic of the Eaton-Lambert syndrome disappeared. To our knowledge, it has not been reported before that chemotherapy alone of a small cell bronchogenic carcinoma has resulted in clinical, roentgenologic, and electrophysiologic remission of the Eaton-Lambert syndrome.

Vincristine, Adriamycin, cyclophosphamide, and etoposide (VP16-213) in small-cell anaplastic carcinoma of the lung.

Twelve patients with small-cell anaplastic carcinoma of the lung were treated with vincristine 1 mg/m2 i.v. day 1, adriamycin 50 mg/M2 i.

Toxic epidermal injury following intraarterial adriamycin treatment.

Toxic epidermal injury was induced in the right forearm and thumb of a 74-year-old woman following two courses of 28 mg/m2 Adriamycin infused in the brachial artery with a three-week interval. The toxic epidermal injury was treated with a wet dressing solution and a neomycin cream without corticoids; it healed in one month. Afterwards the woman received 22 courses of Adriamycin intravenously or intraarterially in 5.

Phase II study of spirogermanium in advanced ovarian malignancy.

In the present phase II trial 18 heavily pretreated patients with advanced ovarian malignancy were treated with spirogermanium, 11 im and seven iv. Objective responses (partial remission) were obtained in two (11%) of the 18 patients, with a remission duration of 5 and 23 + months, respectively. An additional four (22%) patients had stable disease.

Adriamycin-methotrexate combination chemotherapy of advanced carcinoma of the cervix: a third look.

Twenty-four consecutive women with recurrence and/or metastasizing carcinoma of the cervix were treated with adriamycin and methotrexate. All patients had previously been treated with external irradiation and 2 intracavitary radium applications. The median recurrence-free interval was 22 months.

Short-term intra-arterial mitomycin C in hepatic metastases.

Short-term intra-arterial Mitomycin C treatment of hepatic metastases from various malignancies was performed in 24 evaluable patients. An objective regression was obtained in 12 patients. The median survival of responders was 11 months compared with 3 months in nonresponders.

Mitomycin C in advanced gallbladder carcinoma.

Seven patients with advanced gallbladder carcinoma were given intraarterial infusions of 10 to 15 mg mitomycin C with 10 to 24 days' interval, 3 received intravenous infusion (10 mg/m2) with median 3 weeks' interval. Stationary disease was obtained in 4 patients, progressive disease in 4, and treatment failures in 2. The median survival after mitomycin C treatment was 4 months (range 1-23 +).

CVP-remission-maintenance in stage I or II non-Hodgkin's lymphomas: preliminary results of a randomized study.

The effect of adjuvant combination chemotherapy when given to non-laparotomized patients in remission after radiotherapy in stage I or II non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was studied in a prospective randomized multicenter study. Locally extended field radiotherapy was given to a target absorbed dose of 40 Gy in 20 fractions. Fifty-five patients who were in complete remission 6 weeks after conclusion of radiotherapy were randomized to either no further therapy or to 9 cycles of CVP (cyclophosphamide + vincristine + prednisolone).

Adriamycin cardiotoxicity: a survey of 1273 patients.

Valuable information was collected on the medical history and clinical course of 1273 patients entered in clinical trials with Adriamycin (ADR) carried out in 12 European cancer centers. A coded patient form was used for the data collection carried out in each center by a qualified physician following a guideline which was discussed and accepted by all of the participants. The aim of the study was to define the incidence, characteristics, and possible co-factors of the cardiomyopathy (CMP) in patients treated with combination chemotherapy regimens including ADR.

Chemotherapy of advanced transitional cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis: report of 3 cases treated with vinblastine and chloroethyl-cyclohexyl-nitrosourea.

Three patients with advanced transitional cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis were treated with 5 mg./m.2 body surface vinblastine intravenously weekly and 130 mg.

Phase II study of Leo 1031 (prednimustine) in advanced ovarian carcinoma.

Thirty-six patients with advanced ovarian carcinoma, 21 who had not responded to conventional surgery and irradiation therapy and 15 who had not responded to conventional surgery, irradiation therapy, and chemotherapy, were treated in a phase II study with Leo 1031. Objective responses were obtained in ten (28%) of the 36 patients (two complete and eight partial responses). An additional 11 (32%) patients had stable disease.

Therapeutic effect of tamoxifen versus tamoxifen combined with medroxyprogesterone acetate in advanced breast cancer in postmenopausal women.

Postmenopausal patients, those less than 68 years of age resistant to chemotherapy and those greater than 68 years of age with or without resistance to chemotherapy, entered this trial. Among 101 eligible patients, 46 were randomized to treatment with tamoxifen at a dose of 10 mg 3 times daily and 55 were randomized to treatment with tamoxifen at a dose of 10 mg 3 times daily plus medroxyprogesterone acetate at a dose of 100 mg once daily. Remission (partial plus complete) was obtained in 20 patients (45%) with tamoxifen compared to 14 patients (26%) with tamoxifen plus medroxyprogesterone acetate; however, this difference is not significantly different.

Combination chemotherapy in advanced postmenopausal mammary carcinoma. A comparison between VAC and VACM therapy.

A randomized trial comparing Vincristine, Adriamycin, Cyclophosphamide (VAC) with or without Methotrexate with citrovorum factor rescue (VACM) was performed in 64 patients with metastatic postmenopausal mammary carcinoma. Previous treatment of metastases, dominant site of metastases and performance condition were similar in the patients. No significant difference was found in the response rates (complete remission + partial remission; VAC 21/31, VACM 25/33), in the duration of the remissions or in the survivals.

Intra-arterial chemotherapy of malignant head and neck tumours with superselective angiographic technique.

A technique is described for repeated superselective angiographic infusion of anticancer drugs into advanced malignant tumours of the head and neck region. The technique allows for a high concentration of the drug in the tumour and, furthermore, it is possible to ensure that the infused anticancer drug adequately reaches the tumour. Mitomycin C was given to 15 patients with advanced malignant tumours of the head and neck region.

Cancer chemotherapy in advanced malignant disease. A cost benefit analysis.

A cost benefit analysis of chemotherapy in unselected patients with advanced malignant disease originating in a defined population (250 000 inhabitants) demonstrated that the use of this therapy as the main treatment in hospitalised patients increased from a few per cent during 1973 to 60 per cent during 1977, corresponding to an increase in the cost of drugs from 10 000 to 200 000 dollars. At the same time the capacity for hospital care of patients with advanced malignancies increased from 317 to 488 patients without any enlargement of other resources. As more than 90 per cent of the medical budget consists of expenditures for salaries and localities, a cheaper medical care was obtained, but, above all, the survival rate and the quality of life for many patients was improved.