Second-line treatment with irinotecan plus cisplatin vs cisplatin of patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer pretreated with taxanes and gemcitabine: a multicenter randomised phase II study

The aim of this study was to compare the irinotecan/cisplatin regimen with cisplatin as second-line chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) pretreated with a taxane/gemcitabine regimen. Patients (n=147) with stage IV NSCLC pretreated with a taxane/gemcitabine regimen were randomly assigned to receive either irinotecan (110 mg m−2, day 1 and 100 mg m−2, day 8) and cisplatin (80 mg m−2, day 8) (IC; n=74) or CDDP (80 mg m−2, day 1) (C; n=73) every 3 weeks. Patients treated with IC and C had a median survival of 7.8 and 8.8 months, respectively (P=0.933). The 1-year survival rate was 34.3% for IC-treated patients and 31.7% for C-treated patients. Cox's regression analysis revealed that response to treatment (hazard ratio (HR)=2.787; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.1578–4.922) and performance status (HR=1.865; 95% CI: 1.199–2.872) was independent prognostic factors for survival. Overall response rate was 22.5% (95% CI: 12.8–32.2%) for IC-treated patients and 7.0% (95% CI: 1.15–13.6%) for C-treated patients (P=0.012); tumour growth control (partial remission (PR)+stable disease (SD)) was observed in 26 (38%) IC and 25 (36%) C patients (P=0.878). There was no difference in terms of quality of life between the two chemotherapy arms. The incidence of febrile neutropenia, grade 3 and 4 neutropenia and grade 3 and 4 diarrhoea was significantly higher in the IC- than the C-treated patients. Other toxicities were mild. There were no treatment-related deaths in either arm. The IC regimen did not confer a survival benefit compared with C as second-line treatment of patients with advanced NSCLC pretreated with a taxane/gemcitabine regimen, despite its better efficacy in terms of response rate

A case of Opisthorchis felineus infestation in a pilot from Greece

We describe the case of a 28-year-old man from Greece with Opistorchis felineus infestation. The patient presented with intense abdominal pain, bilious emesis and eosinophilia. He probably acquired the infection overseas, since he was a commercial airline pilot who used to fly to endemic areas and to consume raw or undercooked fish. He was successfully treated with praziquantel administered in divided doses over a single day. Opisthorchiasis is common to eastern Europe and areas of the former Soviet Union, but extremely rare in Greece. Medical personnel should be cognizant of this parasitic infection, since world travel can spread it to areas of the world unaccustomed to it

ATRIAL PRESSURE AND EXPERIMENTAL ATRIAL-FIBRILLATION

A possible profibrillatory effect on the atria of an elevated atrial pressure and the site of atrial stimulation was examined. In 15 anesthetized dogs, right or left atrial or biatrial pacing was applied at a high rate (300-600/min) for 5 seconds at double threshold intensity under a wide range of atrial pressures achieved by venous or arterial transfusion or bleeding. Induction of atrial fibrillation in 236 of 1,971 pacing runs was associated with a significantly higher (P < 0.001) atrial pressure (21.6 +/- 12.2 mmHg, mean +/- SD) than maintenance of sinus rhythm (16.8 +/- 11.1 mmHg in 1,735 of 1,971 pacing runs). Stimulation of the right atrium resulted in atrial fibrillation more frequently than left atrial or biatrial stimulation, with biatrial stimulation less frequent than right or left atrial stimulation. The induction of atrial fibrillation was related to the atrial pressure and to the site of stimulation but not to the pacing rate or the prepacing heart rate. The prepacing heart rate, associated with failure to induce sustained atrial fibrillation, was higher than that associated with atrial fibrillation in 12 of 15 experiments (significantly in 6) and not significantly lower in 3 of 15. Atrial fibrillation lasting 1 minute or more was more frequently associated with simultaneous stimulation of both atria than of either atrium alone. Thus, an elevated atrial pressure may facilitate the induction of atrial fibrillation. The site of stimulation also plays an important role for both the induction and maintenance of atrial fibrillation in this model

SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE MECHANISM OF PRESSURE RELATED ATRIAL-FIBRILLATION

In order to investigate the effect of atrial pressure on the propensity of the atria to fibrillate and the mechanism of this association, the right atrial pressure was changed acutely by transfusion-bleeding in 12 anaesthetized open-chest dogs. Under various atrial pressures the conduction time was measured between two pairs of hook electrodes positioned on the two atrial appendages respectively. The effective refractory period was measured by continuous pacing of the right atrium at a 250 ms cycle length at double threshold intensity and interpolating a progressively earlier stimulus after each eighth paced beat. The propensity of fibrillation was studied by rapid (450 min(-1)) pacing of the atria at double threshold intensity for 10 s at different atrial pressures. At a high (greater than or equal to 14 mmHg) atrial pressure the conduction time (45.7 +/- 14.2 ms) was significantly (P<0.01) longer, the effective refractory period (157.9 +/- 15.2 ms) significantly (P<0.01) longer and the atrial fibrillation (11/19 or 57.9%) significantly (chi(2) = 9.95, P<0.001) more common than at a low (less than or equal to 10 mmHg) pressure (35.2 +/- 11.6, 146.2 +/- 12.4, 3/24 or 12.5%, respectively). Analysis of variance showed that the probability of atrial fibrillation was significantly affected by the atrial pressure but not by either the conduction time or the effective refractory period. The findings suggest that an increase in right atrial pressure by acute volume overload prolongs the inter-atrial conduction time and right atrial refractoriness and increases the propensity of the atria to fibrillate by rapid atrial stimulation. The effect of atrial pressure on fibrillation does not seem to be mediated by the prolonged atrial refractoriness or conduction time

A multicenter phase II study of docetaxel in combination with gefitinib in gemcitabine-pretreated patients with advanced/metastatic pancreatic cancer

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy and tolerance of the docetaxel/gefitinib combination as second-line treatment in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. Patients and Methods: Twenty-six patients pretreated with gemcitabine-based chemotherapy were enrolled in the study. Docetaxel (75 mg/m2, i.v.) was administered every 3 weeks for a maximum of 6 cycles and gefitinib (250 mg/day, p.o.) was given continuously. Results: Five (19.2%) patients achieved stable disease. The median duration of disease control was 4.8 months (range 1-13.2), the median time to disease progression 2.1 months (range 1-7.3) and the median survival time 2.9 months (range 1-13.9). Grade 3/4 neutropenia was recorded in 9 (34.6%) patients, although only 1 (3.8%) developed grade 2 febrile neutropenia. One (3.8%) patient experienced grade 3 fatigue and 2 (7.7%) grade 3 diarrhea. Grade 1/2 rash was observed in 13 (50%) patients. There were no treatment-related deaths. Conclusion: The docetaxel/gefitinib combination, although safe, has no activity as salvage treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer after failure of gemcitabine-based chemotherapy. Copyright © 2006 S. Karger AG

Oxaliplatin as first-line treatment in inoperable biliary tract carcinoma: A multicenter phase II study

Background: A multicenter phase II study was conducted in order to evaluate the efficacy and safety of oxaliplatin as first-line treatment of patients with locally advanced or metastatic carcinoma of the biliary tract. Patients and Methods: Twenty-nine chemo-naïve patients with locally advanced or metastatic biliary tract carcinoma received oxaliplatin 130 mg/m2 i.v. every 21 days. Patients were treated until tumor progression or unacceptable toxicity. Results: An objective response (3 complete responses, 3 partial responses) was achieved in 6 patients (20.6%, 95% CI 5.95-35.4). Disease control (complete response, partial response and stable disease) was observed in 14 patients (48.2%). The median time to tumor progression was 3 months (range 0.7-39) and the median overall survival was 7 months (range 1-39). The 1-year survival rate was 32%. Toxicity was mild. Conclusion: Oxaliplatin is an active agent against biliary tract carcinoma and therefore should be further investigated in combination with other cytotoxic drugs. Copyright © 2006 S. Karger AG