[Human IgG and adjuvant therapy in patients with colon-rectal cancer]. / IgG umane e terapia adiuvante in pazienti con carcinoma del colon-retto.

UNLABELLED: It is well known that, in patients with carcinoma, chemotherapy produces an increase of the incidence of infections and changes the immune defences of the patient. Since 1952 human immunoglobulins have been used for pathologies with immune deficiency. This study aims to evaluate the immunologic efficacy of purified human immunoglobulins in patients with colon-rectal cancer undergoing chemotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In 60 patients of both sexes, with colon-rectal cancer after surgical operation and who underwent chemotherapy with 5-FU and folinic acid, about thirty of them were treated with purified human IgG. In particular, the hemochrome and the microbiologic parameters were evaluated. RESULTS: The percentage of infections in patients treated with purified human immunoglobulins was less in comparison to patients treated only with chemotherapy and in this sphere, a prevalence of sepsis sustained by Gram-, was observed in the control group in respect to patients treated with purified human IgG. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The authors have observed a positive qualitative variation in the functional state of the immunocompetent cells; the IgG would play the role of functional stimulation of immediate immunity, pointed out by an inferior number of infections in patients treated with IgG. Therefore, it is evident that the use of such therapeutic factors that can help in the reintegration of a slackened control of immunity represented by neutropenic leucocytes, might contribute to rendering the diffusion of the tumour more difficult.

[Carcinoma of the gallbladder. State of the art]. / Il carcinoma della colecisti. Stato dell'arte.

The authors examine the most interesting data about gallbladder cancer. They emphasize the difficulties of an useful approach to this pathology: an early diagnosis is quite impossible and the surgical treatment very disappointing.

[Purified human IgG administration, after chemotherapy, to patients with colorectal carcinoma]. / La somministrazione, dopo chemioterapia, di IgG umane purificate in pazienti affetti da carcinoma del colon-retto.

The authors, in the present study try to test the prophylactic effect of human IgG on surgical patients affected by colorectal cancer and undergoing chemotherapy in order to prevent microbial infections, supporting immunological host defences.