[Immunotherapy for MDR-TB (multi-drug resistant tuberculosis)--its feasibility].

MDR-TB is known to be man-made-disease. Inappropriate treatment of tuberculosis is responsible for the development of MDR-TB. MDR-TB is often accompanied with the immunosuppression of the host.

Phase I and pharmacologic study of oral (E)-2'-deoxy-2'-(fluoromethylene) cytidine: on a daily x 5-day schedule.

(E)-2'-deoxy-2'-(fluoromethylene)cytidine (FMdC), one of the most potent inhibitors of ribonucleoside diphosphate reductase, was selected for clinical development because of its novel mechanisms of action, and strong antitumor activity against experimental tumor models. This study was designed to determine the toxicities, maximum-tolerated dose (MTD), and pharmacokinetic profile of FMdC. FMdC was given orally for 5 consecutive days every 3 or 4 weeks in patients with advanced solid tumors.

[Tuberculosis outbreak among inpatients].

The Index case, 22 year-old pregnant woman, was admitted for threatened abortion among obstetric ward in X Hospital for 17 days. Two months later, she was admitted for delivery among perinatal ward in another Y Hospital for 5 days. She produced persistent cough and sputum, when she had diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) with sputum smear-positive and cavity on 2nd Y hospital day.

[The current situation and treatment of childhood tuberculosis].

We performed a retrospective analysis of 394 patients who were treated for active tuberculosis (TB) at our hospital from 1976 to 1997. The diagnosis criteria for establishing TB were history of direct contact with TB patients, tuberculin skin test reactivity, positive bacteriology and radiographic findings compatible with TB. There were 192 males and 202 females (age range 1 month to 18 years of age, mean 6.

Effect of long-term treatment with inhaled beclomethasone dipropionate on growth of asthmatic children.

The effect of long-term inhaled steroid therapy on linear growth in asthmatic children is still a point of controversy. We tried to clarify the effect of long-term treatment with inhaled beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) on linear growth and final height of asthmatic children. Height data measured annually from 12 years (beginning at age 10 years in most patients) to 20 years of age were retrospectively collected from clinical records in 97 moderate to severe asthmatics (49 boys, 48 girls) born in 1971-1975 who were observed regularly for more than 8 years at our outpatient clinic.

Topical treatment of nasal polyps with a beclomethasone dipropionate powder preparation.

The clinical efficacy of a topical preparation consisting of beclomethasone dipropionate (BDP) powder and a mucous membrane adhesive agent (hydroxypropylcellulose, HPC) for nasal polyps was examined. For 1 week, in 31 patients with bilateral nasal polyposis, the clinical efficacy of the topical BDP-HPC powder treatment was examined. The effect of this treatment on the histology of the nasal polyps was also investigated.

Prognostic significance of CYFRA 21-1 in non-small cell lung cancer.

Between July 1991 and February 1993, CYFRA 21-1 levels of 149 newly diagnosed patients with histologically proven non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) at Osaka Prefectural Habikino Hospital were measured with an enzyme immunoassay method developed by Boeringer Mannheim (Enzymun-Test CYFRA 21-1). NSCLC patients with CYFRA 21-1 serum levels over 3.5 ng/ml had a significantly poorer prognosis than did patients with normal CYFRA 21-1 levels (P < 0.

[Analysis of the factors involving in the success or failure of home infusion therapy (HIT)].

A survey was conducted from April through September, 1997, of 24 hospitalized terminal lung cancer patients connected to IVH and CSC, for whom the possibility of release from hospital was considered, and of their families. A comparative survey was made between patients who accepted HIT and those who did not. No difference was found between the groups by age, sex, or disease stage, nor was there a difference in physical symptoms such as pain and respiratory difficulty.

[Tuberculosis in children].

Newly registered active tuberculosis in children is under 300 persons a year in Japan, now. In order to lessen further and exterminate childhood tuberculosis in near future, physician have to make effort to find the infected children by good-timing thorough surveillance when he find an adult tuberculosis patient. Chemoprophylaxis could prevent the infected children from progressing to active disease.

[Severe pneumococcal pneumonia with acute respiratory failure and neutropenia].

Severe pneumococcal pneumonia may precipitate both respiratory failure and neutropenia. The prognoses are considered to be very poor in such cases. We encountered three patients with pneumococcal pneumonia presenting respiratory failure and neutropenia, and successfully treated two.

Clinical significance of p53 in non-small-cell lung cancer.

p53 abnormalities appear to play critical roles in human carcinogenesis. Many studies have indicated that p53 alteration is responsible for the differences in clinical characteristics of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The purpose of this review is to evaluate and summarize the significance of p53 alteration in the diagnosis and therapy of NSCLC.

[Polymyositis-induced respiratory failure in the presence of antecedent pleural effusion].

Pulmonary involvement is generally recognized to be an important determinant of the clinical course in cases of polymyositis. A patient with bilateral pleural effusion as an initial symptom developed respiratory failure due to muscle weakness. Polymyositis was diagnosed on the basis of a muscle biopsy.

p21 expression as a predictor for favorable prognosis in squamous cell carcinoma of the lung.

Although p21 WAF1/Cip1 expression has been detected immunohistochemically in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the associations between p21 expression and clinical characteristics are unknown. To determine the association between p21 expression and clinical features, p21 expression was immunohistochemically analyzed in paraffin-embedded tumor samples from 137 patients with curatively resected NSCLC. p21 expression, indicating normal p21 function, was detected in 48 (35.

Three dimensional imaging of tracheobronchial system using spiral CT.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy of 3D reconstruction of the tracheobronchial system using spiral CT. A total of 25 patients with tracheobronchial abnormalities, stenosis (n = 21) and fistula with esophagus (n = 4), underwent a single breathhold spiral CT (5 mm collision, 5 mm)/s increment). With respect to localization, extent and degree of stenosis and size of fistula were compared with findings at bronchoscopy.

Combination of irinotecan and etoposide for treatment of refractory or relapsed small-cell lung cancer.

Purpose: To determine the response rate, survival, and toxicity of irinotecan (CPT-11), a topoisomerase I inhibitor, combined with etoposide, a topoisomerase II inhibitor, in refractory or relapsed small-cell lung cancer (SCLC).

Patients And Methods: Twenty-five patients with refractory or relapsed SCLC were entered onto the trial. All 25 patients had been pretreated with some form of cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy and had also received previous etoposide- or anthracyclinecontaining chemotherapy.

Interleukin 6 is a cause of flu-like symptoms in treatment with a deoxycytidine analogue.

The precise mechanism of fever and flu-like syndrome that occurs in treatment with deoxycytidine analogues remains unclear. This study demonstrated a strong correlation between plasma interleukin 6 levels and fever in treatment with oral (E)-2'-deoxy-2'(fluoromethylene)cytidine, another deoxycytidine analogue.

A phase II trial of combination of CPT-11 and cisplatin for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer. CPT-11 Lung Cancer Study Group.

A phase I trial of the combination of irinotecan (CPT-11) with cisplatin in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) showed a very promising response rate of 54% in previously untreated NSCLC patients. This study was conducted to confirm the activity and toxicities of CPT-11 and cisplatin combination for previously untreated NSCLC in a multi-institutional phase II study. Seventy patients with stage IIIB or IV NSCLC received CPT-11 60 mg m(-2) intravenously (i.

Limited-stage small cell lung cancer: local failure after chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Purpose: To evaluate radiation therapy regimens for improvement in local control in patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer.

Materials And Methods: Radical radiation therapy results in 117 patients with limited-stage small cell lung cancer were retrospectively reviewed. The protocols in 90 patients were 40 Gy in 20 fractions (n = 28), 50 Gy in 25 fractions (n = 32), and 45 Gy in 30 fractions (accelerated hyperfractionation, n = 30).

Phase II trial of carboplatin plus oral etoposide for elderly patients with small-cell lung cancer.

A phase II trial was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of the Egorin's carboplatin dosing formula with 14-day oral etoposide in 38 elderly patients with small-cell lung cancer (SCLC). The overall response rate was 81%. Median survival times were 15.

[Prognostic significance of alterations in telomeric repeat length in patients with pathological stage I-II non-small cell lung cancer].

Unlabelled: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the correlation between alteration in telomere length and prognosis in patients with pathological stage I-II non-small cell lung cancer. We measured telomeric repeat length and telomerase activity by use of southern blot analysis of terminal restriction fragments and a non-radioactive ELISA-based assay, respectively.

Results: Alterations in TRF lengths were present in 17(29.

Lung cancer: intermittent irradiation synchronized with respiratory motion--results of a pilot study.

Purpose: To test the feasibility of a system for intermittent irradiation synchronized with respiratory motion in a clinical setting.

Materials And Methods: A newly developed gate pulse controller that starts and stops irradiation at a chosen phase of the respiratory cycle by controlling a linear accelerator was used in six patients with lung cancer. A laser displacement sensor was used for the detection of respiratory motion.

[Home infusion therapy for cancer patients at a near-terminal stage--analysis of cases who died at home].

To improve the quality of life in cancer patients at a near-terminal stage, we assisted patients to stay home using a system for home infusion therapy (HIT) established at Osaka Prefectural Habikino Hospital in 1994. From April in 1995 to April in 1996, 25 patients were treated at home using the HIT system for longer than 7 days. Thirteen out of 25 patients still stayed at home even at a terminal stage and died in their residences.

Prognostic significance of serum p53 antibodies in squamous cell carcinoma of the lung.

Background: The prognostic significance of serum p53-Abs positivity for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still unknown.

Patients And Methods: To determine the prognostic value of serum p53-Abs status, we determined serum p53-Abs and immunohistochemistry in 140 patients with stage I-IIIA NSCLC.

Results: p53-Abs were detected in 12.

[Combination chemotherapy in the treatment of inoperable non-small cell lung cancer].

Recent meta-analysis data showed that alkylating agents had a detrimental effect on survival of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but that cisplatin-containing regimens afforded a modest but significant survival advantage. Regrettably, there is no standard therapy for the treatment of NSCLC. The development of new drugs is clearly an important avenue for improving the treatment of NSCLC.