Utilization of phosphogypsum in tannery sludge stabilization and evaluation of the radiological impact.

The current global trend towards increasingly stringent environmental standards and efforts for efficient utilization and re-use of available by-products and/or wastes, favors the use of low-cost sorbent materials for the treatment of heavy metal-contaminated solid wastes. In this study, the stabilization of tannery sludge, produced from the physicochemical and biological treatment of tannery wastewaters, was examined by the addition of phosphogypsum (PG) at a ratio of 1:1. Characterization of the tannery sludge leachates showed high amounts of chromium which exceeded the acceptable level for disposal in non-hazardous waste landfills, while the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations exceeded the limits for disposal in landfills for hazardous wastes, according to the EU Decision 2003/33/EC. Leachates of the waste stabilized with PG presented chromium and DOC concentrations below the regulation limits for disposal in landfills for non-hazardous wastes. Moreover, mixing PG with tannery sludge resulted in a stabilized waste with reduced radioactivity.

Home treatment with interleukin 2 and beta-interferon in patients with colorectal cancer and hepatocellular carcinoma.

Biological response modifiers have been extensively investigated in the management of patients with cancer, but few data are available on tumors of the gastrointestinal tracts. To evaluate the feasibility and activity of the combination of interleukin 2 (IL-2) and beta-interferon (beta-IFN), 15 patients with colorectal cancer and 10 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma were treated with the following outpatient schedule: beta-IFN 3 x 10(6) U i.m. 3 times weekly from day 1 to day 14; IL-2 4.5 x 10(6) U s.c. every 12 for 5 consecutive days a week from day 7 to day 21, the cycles being repeated every 28 days. All of the patients had been previously treated with chemotherapy; 7 unresectable locally advanced, and 18 had metastatic disease. All of the treatment courses were administered in an outpatient setting. No grade 4 side effects were recorded. The worst side effects were grade 3 fever (4 patients) and asthenia (2 patients) requiring treatment discontinuation in 4 cases. Twenty-four patients were evaluated for response (14 with colorectal cancer and 10 with hepatocellular carcinoma). One partial response, 4 stable disease, 9 progressive disease were recorded among the colorectal patients; 4 stable disease and 6 progressive disease among the hepatocellular carcinoma patients. The median duration of stable disease was 3 months for hepatocellular carcinoma and 4 months for colorectal cancer patients. Our results suggest that the schedule is feasible in an outpatient setting. Its limited hematological toxicity makes it suitable to be combined with cytotoxic drugs.