Aberrant oncogene expression in uncultured human sarcoma and melanoma.

Protooncogenes have the ability to induce and/or maintain the transformed state when they are overly expressed or altered by mutation or gene rearrangement. To study the possible involvement of these cellular oncogenes in the neoplastic transformation, we have analyzed their expression in 44 fresh samples obtained from primary, recurrent, or metastatic tumors from patients with a variety of sarcomas and a melanoma. Our analysis was carried out by the northern blot technique using poly (A)+ RNA hybridized with human cellular DNA probes.

A general survey of genetics and cancer.

As the molecular details of cancer have begun to unfold, it has become apparent that the cellular genetic apparatus is defective in the malignant cell. Accordingly, we have attempted to review the prominent aspects of genetics research as it impinges on the problem of cancer. Although the field is immense, we have tried to cover four major areas: human genetics, molecular genetics, somatic cell genetics, and developmental genetics.

Pharmacokinetics and metabolism of the antitumor drug amonafide (NSC-308847) in humans.

Pharmacokinetics and urinary excretion of Amonafide (5-amino-2-[2-(dimethylamine)ethyl]-1H-benz[de]isoquinoline-1,3-(2H)- dione) were examined in seven patients who were administered 400 mg/m2 of drug as a 30-min infusion on a daily schedule for 5 consecutive days. Amonafide concentrations in plasma and urine were determined using reversed phase HPLC. Amonafide was eliminated from plasma with a terminal half-life of 3.

Human papillomavirus infection and neoplasia of the cervix and anogenital region in women with Hodgkin's disease.

Immunosuppression has been associated with an increased incidence of condyloma and neoplasia of the cervix and anogenital region, lesions associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection. The role of immunosuppression as a risk factor for the development of these lesions in patients with Hodgkin's disease was studied in a series of 666 consecutive women seen at the University of Texas M. D.

Intraluminal crystalloids in malignant salivary gland tumors (electron microscopic and X-ray microanalytic studies).

The ultrastructural, X-ray microanalytical, histochemical and immunocytochemical features of intraluminal crystalloids found in adenocarcinomas of the parotid gland have been studied. The crystalloids, putatively derived from an abnormal crystalization of salivary duct proteins, are considerably different from the crystalloids found in normal parotid glands, pleomorphic adenomas, and sialocysts.

Chemotherapy with mitoxantrone in combination with continuous infusion vinblastine for metastatic breast cancer.

The efficacy of mitoxantrone in combination with vinblastine was assessed in 156 patients with metastatic breast cancer who had been treated previously with one or multiple chemotherapeutic regimens. Mitoxantrone was given by random assignment, either as a 10 mg/m2 single intravenous dose or in five consecutive daily fractions of 2 mg¿2. Vinblastine was given as a continuous intravenous infusion of 1.

Adjuvant and neoadjuvant chemotherapy with dacarbazine in high-risk childhood melanoma.

Four of four children with clinical Stage II-IIIB childhood melanoma treated at The University of Texas System Cancer Center M.D. Anderson Hospital with surgical excision of gross disease and adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy with dimethyl triazeno-imidazole carboxamide (dacarbazine) were alive without evidence of disease at 2, 6, 9.

Small cell carcinoma of the kidney. A clinicopathologic, immunohistochemical, and ultrastructural study.

Three cases of primary small cell carcinoma of the kidney with light microscopic, immunohistochemical, and electron microscopic findings are reported. Two patients died of disseminated disease 8 months and 1 year, respectively, after the diagnosis and the third was free of tumor after 18 months. Immunohistochemical studies revealed keratin immunostaining of tumor cells in two cases and staining for neuron-specific enolase in the third.

Antitumor and antimetastatic activity of the differentiating agent N-methylformamide in murine tumor systems.

N-Methylformamide (NMF), a cell-differentiating agent, was assessed for its antitumor activity against a fibrosarcoma (FSA), a hepatocarcinoma (HCA-I) and a mammary carcinoma (MCA-K), syngeneic to C3Hf/Kam mice. Tumors were grown as solitary tumors in the leg or as artificial or spontaneous micrometastases in the lung. NMF, at a dose of 300 mg/kg, was administered i.

Polyamine metabolism in carcinoma of the oral cavity compared with adjacent and normal oral mucosa.

In this study, polyamine biosynthesis required for cellular proliferation showed elevated levels in neoplastic cells. Putrescine, spermidine, and spermine, as well as the rate-limiting enzyme ornithine decarboxylase, were measured to evaluate differences in tissue concentration in squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, and in the normal adjacent, buccal, and retromolar trigone tissues. Mean polyamine levels (nanomoles per gram of tissue +/- standard error of the mean) were significantly elevated in tumor tissue at 136 +/- 42 nmol/g for putrescine compared with 41 +/- 9 nmol/g in adjacent, 25 +/- 5 nmol/g in buccal, and 41 +/- 14 nmol/g in retromolar trigone tissues.

The repair of double-strand DNA breaks correlates with radiosensitivity of L5178Y-S and L5178Y-R cells.

To better understand the basis for the difference in radiosensitivity between the variant murine leukemic lymphoblast cell lines L5178Y-R (resistant) and L5178Y-S (sensitive), the production and repair of DNA damage after X irradiation were measured by the DNA alkaline and neutral elution techniques. The initial yield of single-strand DNA breaks and the rates of their repair were found to be the same in both cell lines by the DNA alkaline elution technique. Using the technique of neutral DNA elution, L5178Y-S cells exhibited slightly increased double-strand breakage immediately after irradiation, most significantly at lower doses (i.

Cyclophosphamide and sequential cisplatin for advanced seminoma: long-term followup in 52 patients.

Fifty-two patients with advanced seminoma were treated with primary chemotherapy: 44 received cyclophosphamide and weekly cisplatin, and 8 received sequential weekly cisplatin alone. Of the patients treated with chemotherapy alone only 44 achieved a complete remission and 4 were salvaged with further therapy (1 chemotherapy and 3 radiation therapy). These 48 patients (92 per cent) remained free of disease at a followup of 30 to 471 weeks.

Successful medical management of neutropenic enterocolitis in adults with acute leukemia.

Seven adults with acute leukemia had a clinical and radiologic diagnosis of neutropenic enterocolitis. Six of the seven patients had granulocyte counts less than 500/microliter. All seven patients responded to intensive medical therapy, including bowel rest, broad spectrum antibiotics, and white blood cell transfusions, and recovered from the neutropenic enterocolitis without surgical intervention.

Old age: a sign of poor prognosis in patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia.

Fifty-four patients aged 60 years or older with a diagnosis of chronic myelogenous leukemia were referred to University of Texas M. D. Anderson Hospital between 1965 and 1982.

Effect of oxidation on the conformation of cell surface H-2 antigens detected by monoclonal antibodies.

Periodate treatment of lymphoid cells is known to render them susceptible to nonspecific lysis by cytotoxic T lymphocytes. To detect alterations in cell surface molecules as a result of such treatment, we investigated the binding of antibodies to oxidized and nonoxidized lymphoid cells and found that oxidation selectively decreases the binding of some anti-H-2 and anti-beta 2m antibodies. This effect was not caused by loss of H-2 molecules from the cells, since the rate of exchange of cell surface beta 2m by exogenously added beta 2m was unchanged, and neither H-2 nor beta 2m molecules could be detected in the supernates of oxidized cells.

Therapy of chronic myelogenous leukemia with recombinant interferon-gamma.

Recently, we reported that recombinant interferon-alpha (rIFN-alpha) can induce hematologic remissions and cytogenetic improvement in newly diagnosed Philadelphia (Ph)-positive chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) patients. Although IFN-gamma is a structurally distinct molecule, this agent suppresses in vitro hematopoietic progenitor cells in a fashion similar to that of IFN-alpha. Therefore, we initiated a study of rIFN-gamma at doses of 0.

In-vitro activity of LY146032 against gram-positive isolates from cancer patients.

The in-vitro activity of LY146032 was compared with that of other antibiotics against Gram-positive organisms, mostly isolated from cancer patients. LY146032 inhibited all isolates, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus faecalis, at a concentration of less than or equal to 2.0 mg/l.

Dosimetric evaluation in heterogeneous tissue of anterior electron beam irradiation for treatment of retinoblastoma.

A dosimetric study of anterior electron beam irradiation for treatment of retinoblastoma was performed to evaluate the influence of tissue heterogeneities on the dose distribution within the eye and the accuracy of the dose calculated by a pencil beam algorithm. Film measurements were made in a variety of polystyrene phantoms and in a removable polystyrene eye incorporated into a tissue substitute phantom constructed from a human skull. Measurements in polystyrene phantoms were used to demonstrate the algorithm's ability to predict the effect of a lens block placed in the beam, as well as the eye's irregular surface shape.

The pyrimido-pyrimidine derivatives RA 233 and RX-RA 85 affect growth and cytoskeletal organization of rat mammary adenocarcinoma cells.

The pyrimido-pyrimidine derivatives RA 233 and RX-RA 85, which are potent inhibitors of platelet and tumor phosphodiesterase, were developed as antitumor agents. When tested by us, these drugs were cytostatic at low concentrations and produced dramatic changes in cell shape and organization of cytoskeletal structures in cultured MTF7 cells derived from the rat 13762NF mammary adenocarcinoma. At high concentrations (up to 600 micrograms/ml) RA 233 was cytostatic but not cytotoxic to MTF7 cells during a 24 hr incubation in vitro, whereas RX-RA 85 was cytotoxic at concentrations above 4 micrograms/ml.

Necrotizing sialometaplasia of major salivary glands.

Major salivary glands have been rarely reported as sites of necrotizing sialometaplasia, a disease primarily affecting minor salivary tissue, particularly that of the palate. Eight cases of necrotizing sialometaplasia of the parotid and submandibular glands are presented and added to six reported earlier by Donath (1979). The clinical and pathologic findings in the 14 cases give strong support to the vascular-based-infarct genesis of necrotizing sialometaplasia.

Role of clindamycin in the treatment of central nervous system toxoplasmosis.

Three patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), central nervous system toxoplasmosis, and hypersensitivity to sulfadiazine were given treatment with clindamycin plus pyrimethamine. All three showed improvement clinically with resolution of symptoms. Two patients had computed tomographic evidence of improvement with reduction in size or clearing of cerebral lesions and the third had resolution of chorioretinitis.

Preoperative radiotherapy for early endometrial carcinoma.

A retrospective study was undertaken to compare the use of one versus two preoperative radium systems for early endometrial carcinoma. The charts of 73 patients treated between 1977 and 1980 were reviewed. No difference was noted between the two groups when compared for stage, grade, depth of myometrial invasion, and histologic type of tumor.