Paclitaxel in combination with carboplatin as salvage treatment in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer: a Hellenic oncology research group multicenter phase II study.

INTRODUCTION: To evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of biweekly paclitaxel and carboplatin combination in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients were treated with paclitaxel at the dose of 135 mg/m(2) followed by carboplatin AUC 3 on day 1 every 2 weeks in cycles of 28 days. RESULTS: Thirty-eight patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer were enrolled, and all of them had received frontline chemotherapy with docetaxel and prednisone, while 24 (63.2 %) had received 2 or more prior chemotherapy regimens. In an intention-to-treatment analysis, a clinical and/or biochemical response (>50 % decline) was observed in 10 patients (26.3 %; 95 % CI, 12.3-40.3 %), stable disease in 13 (34.2 %) and progressive disease in 15 (39.5 %). The median duration of response was 6.1 months (range, 1.0-9.8), the median time to tumor progression (TTP) 3.6 months (95 % CI, 2.1-5.2) and the median overall survival 9.9 months (95 % CI, 6.2-13.6). The probability for 1-year survival was 43 %. Grade 3 and 4 neutropenia was observed in three (7.9 %) and nine (23.7 %) patients, respectively. CONCLUSION: The biweekly administration of paclitaxel/carboplatin regimen in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer is an active and well-tolerated regimen which merits to be further evaluated in the context of salvage treatment.

Severe aortic regurgitation in von Recklinghausen's disease--a case report.

A 71-year-old man with von Recklinghausen's disease presented with NYHA class II exertional dyspnea and easy fatigability since about 20 days. Echocardiography and angiography demonstrated dilatation of aortic root, ascending aorta, and left ventricle, together with severe aortic regurgitation. Because of very few cases of cardiovascular abnormalities having been reported with von Recklinghausen's disease, it is logical to concur that this is simply co-existence, whereas other possible mechanisms are endothelial dysfunction or sympathetic denervation.

Infections in children with acute leukemia.

Twenty children with ALL that died in 1959-1960 and 59 children with ALL that died in 1969-1970 were analyzed according to the infections at both their terminal illness and their initial presentations. Despite the availability of more effective agents for pseudomonas and staphylococcus, the pattern of infecting organisms at the terminal illness did not change appreciably in this decade. E. coli, pseudomonas, staphylococcus, and candida were the principal organisms involved as a cause of death. Thirty-five of these 79 patients were febrile when they initially presented, prior to the institution of chemotherapy. Seven of the 35 patients (20%) had proved infections. It appears that the fever in the majority of patients at their initial presentations was noninfectious in origin. In 1969-1970, 13 pulmonary aspirates were performed to aid in the etiological diagnosis of diffuse interstitial pneumonia. Only a single case (8%) of pneumonia due to pneumocystis carinii was detected, and it is our suspicion that the majority of these interstitial pneumonias were viral in origin.