Prognostic factors affecting long-term outcomes in patients with resected stage IIIA pN2 non-small-cell lung cancer: 5-year follow-up of a phase II study

The aim was to investigate the efficacy of neoadjuvant docetaxel–cisplatin and identify prognostic factors for outcome in locally advanced stage IIIA (pN2 by mediastinoscopy) non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. In all, 75 patients (from 90 enrolled) underwent tumour resection after three 3-week cycles of docetaxel 85 mg m−2 (day 1) plus cisplatin 40 or 50 mg m−2 (days 1 and 2). Therapy was well tolerated (overall grade 3 toxicity occurred in 48% patients; no grade 4 nonhaematological toxicity was reported), with no observed late toxicities. Median overall survival (OS) and event-free survival (EFS) times were 35 and 15 months, respectively, in the 75 patients who underwent surgery; corresponding figures for all 90 patients enrolled were 28 and 12 months. At 3 years after initiating trial therapy, 27 out of 75 patients (36%) were alive and tumour free. At 5-year follow-up, 60 and 65% of patients had local relapse and distant metastases, respectively. The most common sites of distant metastases were the lung (24%) and brain (17%). Factors associated with OS, EFS and risk of local relapse and distant metastases were complete tumour resection and chemotherapy activity (clinical response, pathologic response, mediastinal downstaging). Neoadjuvant docetaxel–cisplatin was effective and tolerable in stage IIIA pN2 NSCLC, with chemotherapy contributing significantly to outcomes

Investigation into the effects of planned restrictions with regard to the use, circulation and substitution of cadmium in products.

The EC-directive 91/338/EWG puts a ban on cadmium for special applications. In the FRG, for all applications included in that directive cadmium is already substituted today. The substitution of cadmium stabilizers will be completed in the near future. The use of cadmium for corrosion protection has been also greatly diminished. Only the substitution of cadmium pigments in red and yellow "high engineering plastics" and keramic glazes cannot be realized presently. The substitution of cadmium for the colouring of plastics lags behind the technical feasibilities. The nickel/hydrogen accumulator, which is available now, and the lithium accumulator will probably cut back the growing consumpton rate of cadmium for sealed nickel/cadmium cells. There are sufficiently large capacities for the recycling of nickel/cadmium accumulators available but the number of accumulators returned is still low. Although the EC-directive 91/157 allows a deposit on batteries containing environmetally hazardous su bstances, its introduction is not currently planned. Cadmium polluted zinc, lead and copper and especially phosphate fertilizers are responsible for a considerable amount of cadmium input into the environment. A threshold limit for cadmium in phosphate ferilizers for the entire EC is not to be expected in the near future

Möglichkeiten und Ausmaß der Minderung luftgängiger Emissionen durch neue Umweltschutztechniken

Eine systematische Zusammenstellung und periodische Fortschreibung der Emissionen von Luftschadstoffen erfolgt lediglich für SO2, NOx, CO, Staub und die Summe der flüchtigen organischen Verbindungen (VOC). Es war daher das Ziel dieser Untersuchung, insbesondere für andere, bedeutsame Schadstoffe aufzuzeigen, in welchem Ausmaß mit derzeit verfügbaren Technologien Emissionen gemindert werden können und jene Schadstoffe und jene Emissionsquellen erkennbar werden zu lassen, bei denen noch Technologiedefizite bei der Emissionsminderung bestehen. Hierzu wurden für die ausgewählten Schadstoffe jene Restemissionen abgeschätzt, die sich ergäben, wenn die verfügbaren Besttechnologien überall dort eingesetzt würden, wo dies technisch möglich und sinnvoll ist. Diese Restemissionen wurden als Indikator für die Bewertung der Leistungsfähigkeit der derzeit verfügbaren Technologien herangezogen. In der vorliegenden Untersuchung konnten keine auf Messung gestützte, originäre Primärdaten erhoben werden, sondern es wurde die vorhandene Literatur ausgewertet. Bei nicht selten stark auseinanderklaffenden Angaben wurde versucht durch Fachgespräche und Abschätzungen die Unsicherheiten soweit wie möglich einzugrenzen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, daß die künftigen stofflichen Schwerpunkte bei der Bekämfung der Luftverschmutzung mit Hilfe neuer Umweltschutztechniken bei den flüchtigen organischen Verbindungen, darunter FCKW und Lösungsmittel, bei den hochtoxischen Spurenschadstoffen wie Dioxinen, Furanen oder polyzyklischen aromatischen Kohlenwasserstoffen sowie bei jenen Schwermetallen zu sehen sind, die in nennenswertem Umfang auch dampfförmig emittiert werden. Zu letzteren zählen unter anderem Quecksilber und Arsen. Die Entwicklung neuer Umweltschutztechnologien sollte künftig verstärkt mittlere und kleine Anlagen einbeziehen, deren Schadstoffauswurf in Summe beträchtliche Anteile an den Gesamtemissionen erreichen kann

Is Magnetic Bistability of Carbenes a General Phenomenon? Isolation of Simple Aryl(trifluoromethyl)carbenes in Both Their Singlet and Triplet States

p-Tolyl(trifluoromethyl)carbene and the related fluorenyl(trifluoromethyl)carbene were synthesized in solid argon and characterized by IR, UV–vis, and electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy as well as by quantum mechanical calculations. The carbenes can be generated in both their triplet and singlet states, and both states coexist under the conditions of matrix isolation. According to our calculations, the singlet and triplet states of these carbenes are energetically nearly degenerate in the gas phase. Warming of matrices containing pure triplet p-tolyl(trifluoromethyl)carbene from 3 to 25 K leads to an interconversion of up to 20% of the triplet into the singlet state. This interconversion is thermally irreversible, and cooling back to 3 K does not change the singlet to triplet ratio. Irradiation at 365 nm results in a complete singlet to triplet interconversion, whereas 450 nm irradiation produces again up to 20% of the singlet state. An alternative way to generate the singlet carbene is the reaction of the triplet with water molecules by annealing water-doped matrices at 25 K. This results in the irreversible formation of a hydrogen-bonded complex between the singlet carbene and water. For fluorenyl(trifluoromethyl)carbene, very similar results are obtained, but the yield of the singlet state is even higher. Magnetic bistability of carbenes seems to be a general phenomenon that only depends on the singlet–triplet gap rather than on the nature of the carbene

Frequency of medullary thyroid carcinoma in an endemic goiter area

A series of 41 poorly differentiated follicular carcinomas of the thyroid gland without histopathological features of medullary or papillary carcinoma and 9 cases of undifferentiated thyroid carcinoma of the small cell type (diagnosed between 1967 and 1983) were investigated immunohistochemically. Two poorly differentiated follicular carcinomas showed a considerable number of calcitonin-positive cells in addition to the weakly thyroglobulin-positive tumor cells. One of these cases revealed several areas with calcitonin-positive tumor cells with additional squamous metaplasia with keratinization. No medullary carcinomas could be demonstrated among the 9 cases previously diagnosed as undifferentiated thyroid carcinomas of the small cell type. From the epidemiological point of view the application of immunohistochemistry does not significantly increase the proportion of medullary carcinomas detected in our endemic goiter area. The incidence of medullary carcinoma remains surprisingly low when compared with nonendemic areas