A simple mathematical method revealing the early stage of acute leukemia in patients with cytopenias.

On the basis of findings in examinations made in 50 patients (25 with hypoplastic anaemia and 15 in the hypoplastic stage of acute leukemia) a simple mathematical method was developed for the differential diagnosis of these two diseases. The following laboratory findings were used for calculating a formula: cellularity of the bone-marrow, percentage of blast cells in the myelogram, percentage of blast cells in leukocyte concentrate, morphology of erythrocytes, presence of normoblastosis, percentage of monocytes and absolute number of neutrophils in the peripheral blood. This method allows the correct diagnosis to be made in 91% of cases with hypoplastic anaemia and in 100% of cases with acute leukemia. By using 7 laboratory findings to be obtained easily this method will enable a correct diagnosis to be made even in those situations where hitherto it was very difficult to make a differential diagnosis or where it was impossible at all.

[Results and perspectives of therapy of chronic myelosis]. / Ergebnisse und Perspektiven der Therapie der chronischen Myelose.

A survey is given on the present state of the standard therapy of chronic myeloleucosis as well as on some newer tendencies of treatment. Since in the therapy of the chronic phase of the disease and also of the blast crisis despite application of combinations of cytostatics no decisive success is to be recorded, some newer techniques--the splenectomy as well as the various kinds of the transplantation of bone marrow (autologous, syngenic, allogenic)--and their chances for success are briefly discussed.

Monocytosis as a sign of subsequent leukemia in patients with cytopenias (preleukemia).

In a prospective 11 year-study 53 patients with cytopenias have been followed from the first appearance of haematological abnormalities to death. In 39 patients (group A) the diagnosis of hypoplastic anaemia has been confirmed on autopsy, in 24 (group B) the diagnosis of acute leukemia has been made clinically and/or on autopsy. In 13 patients of group B a monocytosis exceeding 300 cells/microliters could be found at various times before death (4 to 108 months). Patients affected with monocytosis has a survival time being 4 times longer than that of others. Thus, a long term survey and monocyte counting in patients with cytopenias of unknown origin may be of diagnostic and prognostic value.

[Clinical significance and study of granulocyte function]. / Zur klinischen Bedeutung und Untersuchung der Granulozytenfunktion.

Concerning the total defense of the body the function of granulocytes in the determining parts of phagocytosis (motility, chemotaxis, opsonation, ingestion, microbicidia) are described and the congenital and acquired distrubances of phagocytosis are treated as short survey as well as partly explained by clinical examples. Out of the manifold possibilities of examinations of the function of granulocytes the NBT-test is described as an estimation of the function of granulocytes usable in clinical routine wotk and its application is recommended.

[Trisomy of the long arm of chromosome in a patient with primary myelofibrosis during blast crisis]. / Die Trisomie des langen Armes des ersten Chromosoms bei einem Patienten mit primärer Myelofibrose während der Blastenkrise.

The caryotype of a patient't leukemic cells with primary myelofibrosis being at the stage of blast crisis is described. In all cells examined a great submetacentric chromosome was detected which was formed by the duplication of the whole long arm of the first chromosome. The second chromosome of the first pair remained unchanged. Moreover, there was no sexual chromosome Y in seven metaphase plates. The significance of these and other changes of the first chromosome in the genesis of some malign diseases is discussed.

[The phagocytic activity (ingestion and bactericidal activity) of neutrophil leukocytes in chronic myelosis]. / Die Phagozytosefunktion (Ingestion und Bakterizidie) neutrophiler Leukozyten bei chronischer Myelose.

The paper deals with the results obtained by investigating the function of phagocytes (ingestion and bactericidity) in germs of a stem of staphylococcus aureus 209 and escherichia coli 0-III of mature neutrophilic granulocytes in 30 patients with chronic, not-lymphocytic leukaemia. The ingestion corresponded to the norm. Bactericidity towards the germs of staphylococcus aureus was statistically significant decreased, viz. it was retarded as well as diminished. In certain patients this deviation from the norm found a particularly strong expression, which became evident in clinical appearances. As it was to be expected, no interconnection could be detected between the activity of alkaline granulocytic phosphatase and the function of phagocytosis.

[Leukocyte lysozymes in various forms of leukemia]. / Der Lysozymgehalt der Leukozyten bei verschiedenen Leukoseformen.

The amount of lysozyme in the leukocytes of 47 patients with different forms of leukaemia and 6 healthy persons was investigated. The lysozyme determination was carried out in the lysate of isolated leukocytes obtained after freezing and thawing it seven times. The results expressed in microgram per 10(6) cells were compared with the simultaneously determined lysozyme concentration of serum and urine. A substantial reduction of the lysozyme amount as compared with the normal value (3.1 microgram/10(6) cells) was determined in the leukocytes of patients suffering from chronic lymphatic leukaemia, acute lymphatic leukaemia and the blastic crisis of chronic myeloid leukaemia. Different amounts of lysozyme ranging from extremely low ones to strongly elevated ones were found in leukocytes taken from patients with acute myeloblastic and chronic monocytic leukaemia. In many cases there was a lack of correlation between the lysozyme content of leukocytes on the one hand and that of serum and urine on the other hand. Possible causes underlying this lack of correlation are discussed.

On the presence of lysozyme in the Nuclei of Leukocytes.

The purified chromatin of leukocyte nuclei from two patients, one with chronic granulocytic and another with acute myelomonocytic leukemia, has been investigated for lysozyme activity. The chromatin contained 4.8% resp. 4% of the total amount of lysozyme found in the leukocytes. The function of lysozyme in the nucleus remains unclear.