Preclinical and phase I studies of monoclonal antibodies in melanoma: application to boron neutron capture therapy of melanoma.

Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) provide an attractive method of selectively localizing sufficient boron atoms around tumour cells to capture neutrons. Assuming that 10(8)-10(10) 10B atoms are needed for one capture event and that 10(3)-10(4) atoms can be coupled to each antibody molecule, then 10(5)-10(6) antibody molecules gathered on an individual cell will destroy that cell. Binding to normal tissues, on the other hand, would need to be at least 20-fold less than that to tumour tissues to avoid toxic effects of neutrons on surrounding tissues.

The use of non-prescription salbutamol inhalers by asthmatic patients in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales. Newcastle Retail Pharmacy Research Group.

Because of concern over the unsupervised use of bronchodilator aerosols, we studied the characteristics of a group of asthmatic subjects who purchased their salbutamol inhalers and a group of asthmatic subjects who obtained their inhalers by prescription. Community pharmacists distributed 360 questionnaires to consecutive patients who requested salbutamol inhalers; 320 questionnaires were returned (response rate, 89%). Of these, 240 respondents described themselves as asthmatic and stated that they obtained their inhalers exclusively or predominantly by either purchase (120 subjects) or prescription (120 subjects).

Life satisfaction across treatment methods for patients with end-stage renal failure.

After a report which challenged the generally-held view that renal-transplant recipients have a psychological advantage compared with patients who undergo dialysis, we surveyed the quality of life and psychological distress in all patients who were managed by renal transplantation or dialysis at The Royal Newcastle Hospital Renal Unit. A questionnaire was mailed to patients which covered demographic daily illness severity; the quality of life (satisfaction with life in general, general health, and sexual, family and social relationships); a 28-item general-health questionnaire; a life-event schedule; and a locus-of-control scale. The response rate was 88%.

Augmentation of lymphocyte responses by monoclonal antibodies to the gangliosides GD3 and GD2: the role of protein kinase C, cyclic nucleotides, and intracellular calcium.

Previous studies have shown that MAb's against the gangliosides GD3 and GD2 may augment T cell responses to a variety of stimuli. We present evidence that antiganglioside MAb's, like PHA, increase intracellular cGMP and protein kinase C yet have no effect on intracellular Ca2+. Stimulation of T cells with MAb's to GD3 was associated with increased cGMP levels, particularly in the CD8+ T cell subset which showed the highest degree of potentiation by the MAb's.

A collagen matrix microassay for use in tumour-stromal cell co-cultures.

A collagen matrix microassay technique is described in which separation of collagen layers permits independent assessment of the proliferative capacity of each of two discrete cell populations. The two cell types used in this study were an established colon cancer cell line and a normal colon fibroblast cell line cultured under serum-free conditions. The implications of this in vitro technique for studies of tumour-host cell interactions are discussed.

Adolescent lumbar disc prolapse.

87 adolescents with lumbar disc prolapse treated from 1978 to 1985 were reviewed. The clinical pattern was different from that usually seen in adults, as 41 patients had no leg pain; and signs of neurologic deficit were often absent. Nonoperative treatment was successful in 57/61 patients, and 26 patients underwent discectomy with eventual return to full activity in 23 patients.

Xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis in a renal allograft: a case report.

We report a case of xanthogranulomatous pyelonephritis in a renal allograft. The kidney was not removed and there was an initial response to antibiotic therapy, with amelioration of toxicity and improvement in renal function. However, the kidney failed 10 months later in association with histological changes of chronic rejection.

Audit of investigation and follow-up of patients with raised monoclonal proteins.

Objective: To assess the adequacy of investigation and later review of patients with serum monoclonal proteins detected in our laboratory.

Method: To review all monoclonal proteins detected and to search through the laboratory computerized records for evidence of further investigation and later review.

Results: Nine per cent of monoclonal proteins detected were not followed up at all.

Supplemental oxygen and quality of sleep in patients with chronic obstructive lung disease.

The hypothesis that supplemental oxygen could improve the quality of sleep was tested in 23 consecutive patients (14 male, nine female; age 42-74 years) with chronic obstructive lung disease (mean (SD) FEV1 0.81 (0.32) litre, FEV1/FVC 37% (12%).

Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty as a treatment for snoring.

Uvulopalatopharyngoplaty was performed in 18 consecutive patients (15 men and three women; mean +/- standard deviation [SD] age, 46.3 +/- 7.5 years) who presented for the treatment of heavy habitual snoring.

Expression of the gangliosides GD3 and GD2 on lymphocytes in tissue sections of melanoma.

Previous studies in vitro have shown that monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against gangliosides GD3 and GD2 potentiate lymphocyte responses to a variety of stimuli. The purpose of the present study was to determine by immunohistological techniques whether GD3 and GD2 was expressed on lymphoid cells in vivo around melanoma cells. Studies on metastases in lymph nodes indicated that the lymphoid infiltrate around the margins of the metastases was predominantly CD4+ T cells, which were shown by dual labelling techniques to express mainly GD2 and to a lesser extent GD3.

Post-operative respiratory failure due to bilateral phrenic nerve palsy.

A 65 year old female patient developed a large left pleural effusion and a sternal split dehiscence following aorto-coronary artery bypass grafting. A second operation was performed to investigate and drain the pleural effusion and to repair the sternum. Subsequent to this operation the patient was in acute respiratory failure due to bilateral phrenic palsy.

Audit of the activity of a same day ward.

Objective: To assess the utilization of a 16-bed same day ward with particular reference to preadmission, discharge and after-care planning, and complication and delayed discharge rates.

Method: Three audits, each of 200 consecutive patients, were carried out during 1987 with a questionnaire suitable for desk-top data processing.

Results: The same day ward was capable of being used by a wide variety of disciplines, with one in five patients aged more than 70 years.

A study of intranasally administered interferon A (rIFN-alpha 2A) for the seasonal prophylaxis of natural viral infections of the upper respiratory tract in healthy volunteers.

The efficacy of interferon A (rIFN-alpha 2A), an Escherichia coli-derived interferon, in the prophylaxis of acute upper respiratory tract infection, was evaluated in a community-based double-blind placebo-controlled study in the Australian winter of 1985. The trial population of 412 healthy volunteers (190 males and 222 females, aged 18-65 years) self-administered 1.5, 3.

Influenza vaccination in Australia: a review of the economic evidence for policy recommendations.

The National Health and Medical Research Council recommends that persons who are believed to be at a higher risk of the complications and of dying of influenza should receive annual vaccinations against the disease. The Council refers specifically to persons who are over the age of 65 years and to those with chronic medical conditions. Recommendations such as these place demands on scarce health resources and it is important to determine if such policies result in the efficient utilization of resources.

Hepatic artery aneurysms and biliary surgery: two cases and a literature review.

Two cases of hepatic artery aneurysm are presented. Both occurred as complications of cholecystectomy for gallstone disease. The aneurysm ruptured in both cases leading to very stormy clinical courses and resulting in the death of one patient.