Anticancer research
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Anticancer research · Nov 1999
Early effects of retinoic acid on proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis in non-small cell lung cancer cell lines.
Retinoids represent a potentially useful class of drugs in the chemoprevention and treatment of cancer, due to their ability to regulate cell proliferation and differentiation. However, there is controversy in the literature about the effects of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) in non- small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this study we examined the effects of ATRA on apoptotic death in NSCLC. ⋯ These results indicate the possibility of the early growth-inhibitory and apoptotic effects of ATRA in NSCLC which may result in selection of ATRA-resistant cells.
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Anticancer research · Nov 1999
Cytotoxicity of L-cycloserine against human neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma cells is associated with the suppression of ganglioside expression.
Human neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma express abnormal ganglioside patterns especially GD2 and GM2 which are important for tumour growth. We tested the effects of L-cycloserine (L-CS), a potent inhibitor of synthesis of glycosphingolipids, on the growth, viability and expression of GD2 and GM2 in neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma cells. ⋯ L-CS is a selective antitumoral agent for neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma cells with the ability to reduce expression of tumour associated gangliosides. In vivo experiments suggest that L-CS may be effective drug for treatment of neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma.
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Anticancer research · Sep 1999
Concurrent chemoradiotherapy for locally advanced esophageal cancer--a pilot study by using daily low-dose cisplatin and continuous infusion of 5-fluorouracil.
Concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) has recently become a promising treatment for esophageal cancer. However, most investigators have adopted the conventional or modified Wayne-State PF (cisplatin plus 5-fluorouracil) regimen, which is inevitably associated with moderate to severe treatment-related toxicities. In this pilot study, we incorporated a daily low-dose regimen of cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil into CCRT in order to improve the compliance of the patients. ⋯ We suggest that for locally advanced esophageal cancer CCRT with the aforementioned daily low-dose regimen, is a treatment with good patient compliance.
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Anticancer research · Sep 1999
Tumor blood flow modifying effect of electrochemotherapy with bleomycin.
Electrochemotherapy combines administration of the chemotherapeutic drug, followed by application of electric pulses in order to increase drug delivery into the cells. The aim of this study was to determine the tumor blood flow modifying effect of electrochemotherapy with bleomycin and correlate it with its antitumor effectiveness and extent of tumor necrosis. ⋯ The results indicate that Patent blue staining technique is a simple and reliable method for estimation of tumor blood flow and that antitumor effectiveness of electrochemotherapy with bleomycin could be partly attributed to its tumor blood modifying and anti-vascular effect.
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Anticancer research · Jul 1999
Comparative Study Clinical TrialPrevention of nausea and vomiting (N&V) in cancer patients receiving high-dose cisplatin. Assessment of the potential antiemetic activity of transdermal fentanyl (TTS-F) compared to standard antiemetic treatment in acute and delayed N&V: first clinical report.
A single-institution, prospective, open crossover study was performed to compare the effectiveness and tolerability of transdermal fentanyl (TTS-F) vs intravenous (i.v.) ondansetron (OND), both combined with i.v. DEX, in the prevention of acute nausea and vomiting (N&V), and TTS-F vs metoclopramide (M), both combined with intramuscular (i.m.) DEX, in the prevention of delayed N&V in patients with advanced stage head and neck squamous cell carcinoma receiving high-dose (> or = 100 mg/m2) cisplatin. This is the first report on the clinical use of TTS-F in this setting. ⋯ All patients were adequately informed of the study characteristics and gave their written informed consent before study entry. The antiemetic treatment for acute N&V consisted of A) OND 8 mg plus DEX 20 mg (i.v.) or B) TTS-F 75 micrograms/h plus DEX 20 mg i.v. For prevention of delayed N&V, patients receiving TTS-F for acute N&V were given TTS-F at the same dosage (75 micrograms/h) on days 2-5, whereas patients receiving OND for acute N&V were treated with M 20 mg orally every 6 h on days 2-5, starting 24 h after CDDP. All patients received DEX 8 mg i.m. every 12 h on days 2 and 3, 4 mg i.m. every 12 h on days 4 and 5, starting 24 h after CDDP. From November 1997 to April 1998, 15 consecutive patients entered the study and were assigned to one of the two alternative treatments for acute N&V. All of them were evaluable. Twelve patients were evaluable for delayed N&V. Seven patients were assigned to Group 1 starting with treatment A (OND + DEX) and 8 patients were assigned to Group 2 starting with treatment B (TTS-F + DEX). In the prevention of acute N&V, the overall efficacy of OND + DEX was statistically significantly higher than that of TTS-F + DEX in achieving Complete Response (CR) and Major Efficacy (ME = CR + Major Response, MaR). As for delayed N&V, the overall efficacy of M + DEX, both in achieving CR and ME, although higher, was statistically not significantly different from that of TTS-F + DEX. Unfortunately, due to the small number of patients included in the study, the sophisticated criteria for evaluating response in antiemetic research, such as the persistence of efficacy, the response after crossing-over, did not make it possible for us to draw additional conclusions, although the trend was in favor of "standard" treatments, particularly in acute N&V. The 'response to treatment A (OND + DEX) in the prevention of acute N&V was in the same range as the response to treatment A (M + DEX) for delayed N&V. The response to treatment B (TTS-F) for acute N&V was lower than the response to the same treatment for delayed N&V. The TTS-F treatment was well-tolerated with no significant side-effects including the well-known opioid-related symptoms. Our study confirms that the currently available standard antiemetic treatments both for acute and delayed N&V must be considered by far the most effective ones for clinical use.