Stratified phase II trial of cetuximab in patients with recurrent high-grade glioma.

Background: To evaluate the antitumor activity and toxicity of single-agent cetuximab in patients with recurrent high-grade glioma (HGG) after failure of surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.

Patients And Methods: In this two-arm, open-label, phase II study patients were stratified according to their epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) gene amplification status. Cetuximab was administered intravenously at a dose of 400 mg/m(2) on week 1 followed by weekly dose of 250 mg/m(2).

Agrobacterium radiobacter bacteremia in oncologic and geriatric patients: presentation of two cases and review of the literature.

Introduction: We report here two cases of Agrobacterium radiobacter bacteremia. These cases were observed at the same institution over a short time period (3 months).

Case Reports: The first patient was a female cancer patient receiving third-line chemotherapy for ovarian carcinoma.

Oral mucositis induced by anticancer treatments: physiopathology and treatments.

Oral mucositis is a frequent and devastating side effect of anticancer treatments. It impairs the patient's quality of life and also can be life threatening because severe infections and delayed or incomplete anticancer treatments may result. This problem has been largely overlooked and underestimated in the past.

Ovarian cancer associated with carcinomatous meningitis: a case report and review of the literature.

We report the case of a 62-year-old patient who developed a carcinomatous meningitis while on second-line chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. Cytologic analyses confirmed that carcinomatous cells of ovarian origin were present in cerebrospinal fluid. Carcinomatous meningitis is a very rare event in the natural history of ovarian carcinoma.

Randomized, double-blind, active-controlled trial of every-3-week darbepoetin alfa for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced anemia.

Background: In the United States, darbepoetin alfa (Aranesp) is often used to treat patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia using weekly or every-2-week administration schedules. In Europe, darbepoetin alfa is used either weekly or in every-3-week dosing. The every-3-week schedule can be synchronized with many chemotherapy regimens, resulting in fewer visits and reducing burden to patients, but the safety and efficacy of this regimen have not been clear.

European Society of Intensive Care Medicine--14th annual congress.

The European Society of Intensive Care Medicine (ESICM) annual congress provided an opportunity for basic scientists and clinicians to share recent findings. In addition to the numerous free communications, several sessions by established speakers were dedicated to state-of-the-art tutorials. As usual, the areas of interest varied widely, reflecting the large array of 'critical illnesses'.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae fungemia in a head and neck cancer patient: a case report and review of the literature.

We report the case of a 65-year old male who developed Saccharomyces cerevisiae fungemia after completing a course of concomitant chemotherapy and radiation therapy for head and neck carcinoma. He had grade IV oral mucositis, and received Saccharomyces boulardii (Perenterol) orally as treatment for aseptic diarrhoea just before the onset of fungemia. We discuss the epidemiology and pathology of Saccharomyces cerevisiae in the cancer patient population.

Circadian variations of bone marrow engraftability.

Circadian rhythms exist for hematopoiesis, but little is known about circadian variation of bone marrow engraftability and host "acceptability". Using a B6.SJL to C57BL/6J congenic transplant model, we chose 3-times with light on: Hours After Light Onset (HALO) 4, 8, and 12 and 3-times with light off: HALO 16, 20, and 24.

Second cancers and late toxicities after treatment of aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma with the ACVBP regimen: a GELA cohort study on 2837 patients.

The survival of patients with aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is increasing, but the incidence of secondary cancer and late toxicity is poorly defined for those treated with cyclophosphamide-hydroxydaunomycin/doxorubicin-Oncovin-prednisone (CHOP)-like chemotherapy. From February 1984 to January 1998, 2837 patients with aggressive NHL received the control-arm chemotherapy adriamycin-cyclophosphamide-vindesine-bleomycin-prednisone (ACVBP) in 3 consecutive Groupe d'Etude des Lymphomes de l'Adulte (GELA) studies. With a median follow-up time of 74 months, the 5-year overall and event-free survival rates were 60% and 52%.

Engraftment of post 5-fluorouracil murine marrow into minimally myeloablated (100 cGy) murine hosts.

Minimal myeloablative approaches are now being widely applied in the treatment of different hematological malignancies. One hundred cGy whole-body irradiation is a stem-cell-toxic, relatively non-myelotoxic treatment that allows for relatively high levels of donor chimerism. 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) treatment leads to a relative concentration of high proliferative potential-colony-forming cell (HPP-CFC) and is an approach that has been used to induce in vivo progenitor/stem cell cycling to facilitate retroviral integration in gene therapy approaches.

Reversible amnesia in a Type 1 diabetic patient and bilateral hippocampal lesions on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Aims: Intensive insulin therapy of Type 1 diabetes limits its chronic complications, but is associated with an increased risk of severe hypoglycaemia and its neuroglycopenic consequences.

Methods: Case report.

Results: A 24-year-old male with 15 years' history of Type 1 diabetes, who was missing for 48 h, was found at home in ketoacidosis coma.

Influence of timing of administration of 5-fluorouracil to donors on bone marrow engraftment in nonmyeloablated hosts.

We evaluated the engraftment and the cell cycle status of marrow cells at various times after 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) administration. 5-FU (150 mg/kg) was given to donor male BALB/c mice at 1, 2, 6, or 12 days prior to marrow harvest. The donor cells were then assessed in host nonmyeloablated female mice.

[Risk of phosphate enemas in the infant].

Background: Hypertonic sodium phosphate enema (Fleet) are available for relief of constipation. They may be responsible for life-threatening electrolyte disturbances (hyperphosphatemia, hypernatremia, hypocalcemia) and severe dehydration.

Observation: A 14-month-old child with a neonatal repaired Hirschsprung's disease was urgently admitted for apathy.

Ex vivo clinical measurement of the optical penetration depth in digestive tissues.

The optical penetration depth of 120 biopsy samples taken from normal or neoplastic digestive tissues is measured by means of a device which can be used in a clinical environment, is easy to handle and delivers results quickly. It is seen that, at 655 nm, values of the penetration depth are centred around 1.1 mm and that they can vary by roughly a factor of 2 between samples of a given kind of tissue.

An easier method for percutaneous endoscopic gastrojejunostomy tube placement.

Background: The current procedures for percutaneous endoscopic gastrojejunostomy (PEG-J) tube placement require fluoroscopy and are time consuming. We describe a new, simple method.

Methods: Ten patients had a PEG-J tube placed by the new method.

Diagnosis and endovascular treatment of midbasilar dissecting aneurysm.

The authors present the case of a patient with a midbasilar dissecting aneurysm successfully treated by staged bilateral endovascular occlusion of the vertebral artery. The clinical and the radiological features are presented with references to the literature, and the choice of endovascular rather than neurosurgical treatment is discussed in light to our previously reported experience about the treatment of unclippable vertebrobasilar aneurysms.