ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To summarize the features of asbestos-related lung cancer. PATIENTS: Thirty-one lung cancer patients with occupational exposure to chrysotile asbestos fibers. They worked or had worked in one asbestos factory or its subcontracters. RESULT: All patients were male with mean age of 60.6 when diagnosed, and all except one were current or ex-'heavy' smokers. Histological types were fairly evenly divided into adeno-, squamous and small cell carcinoma and 24 (78%) of patients showed 'peripheral type' lung cancers. Regarding clinical stages, 20 patients (65%) were classified as III or IV (advanced stage). Tumor shadow(s) was detected on chest X-ray in 22 patients (71%), and in 5 patients with 'negative' chest X-ray, chest CT was necessary to recognize a primary tumor. Seventeen patients (55%) did not undergo periodical check-ups. CONCLUSION: Occupational asbestos exposure is interpreted as one of the important risks for lung cancer and frequent and accurate observation is necessary.
Subject(s)
Asbestos/adverse effects , Carcinoma/etiology , Lung Neoplasms/etiology , Occupational Diseases/etiology , Occupational Exposure/adverse effects , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Carcinoma/diagnosis , Humans , Lung Neoplasms/diagnosis , Male , Middle Aged , Neoplasm Staging , Occupational Diseases/diagnosis , Retrospective StudiesSubject(s)
Lung Neoplasms/psychology , Aged , Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use , Cisplatin/administration & dosage , Female , Humans , Lung Neoplasms/drug therapy , Male , Manifest Anxiety Scale , Middle Aged , Mitomycin/administration & dosage , Personality Inventory , Quality of Life , Vincristine/administration & dosageABSTRACT
The authors established an easy fluorescent microscopy method to measure the ratio of CD4 (helper/inducer T lymphocytes) to CD8 (suppressor/cytotoxic T lymphocytes) (CD4/CD8 ratio) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in patients with diffuse pulmonary diseases and measles pneumonia. The CD4/CD8 ratio determined by this method strongly correlated with the CD4/CD8 ratio obtained by flow cytometry in both peripheral blood lymphocytes and BALF lymphocytes. When the proportion of lymphocytes in BALF nuclear cells is more than 6%, the CD4/CD8 ratio in BALF was measurable. The CD4/CD8 ratio in peripheral blood was not significantly different among hypersensitive pneumonitis (HP), sarcoidosis (SAR), collagen vascular disease (CVD), idiopathic interstitial pneumonitis (IIP), and measles pneumonia (MP). However, the BALF CD4/CD8 ratio was 0.61 +/- 0.37 in HP, 6.83 +/- 2.73 in SAR, 0.77 +/- 0.40 in CVD, 1.49 +/- 0.29 in IIP. These results were consistent with previously published data. The CD4/CD8 ratio in patients with MP was as low as 0.39 +/- 0.34. In patients with summer type HP, this ratio was low in the acute phase, but became within normal range after moving or reconstructing their homes, accompanied with the improvement of subjective symptoms and the disappearance of inflammation. These data indicate that our method is very simple and useful in the diagnosis and the monitoring of diffuse pulmonary diseases.
Subject(s)
Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte/analysis , Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid/immunology , CD4 Antigens/analysis , Lung Diseases/immunology , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , CD8 Antigens , Humans , Microscopy, Fluorescence/methods , Middle AgedABSTRACT
Rifampicin therapy caused exacerbation of skin lesions, rising serum pemphigus antibody titres, and decreased serum betamethasone levels in a 59-year-old man with pemphigus vulgaris. Exacerbation of pemphigus was confined to the period of rifampicin therapy and seems to be best explained by the effect of rifampicin on the metabolism of betamethasone. Physicians prescribing rifampicin for the treatment of tuberculosis should be aware of its potential to produce such an important adverse reaction.
