[Adverse events of immune checkpoint inhibitors]. / Nebenwirkungen der Immun-Checkpoint-Inhibitoren.

After immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy was approved for renal cell carcinoma last year, this new immune therapy has spread to urology. Further approvals (atezolizumab, nivolumab, pembrolizumab) are expected in 2017 for metastatic urothelial carcinoma that has progressed following treatment with platinum-based chemotherapy. With expanding use of immune checkpoint inhibitors, experience in diagnosing and managing immune-mediated adverse events increases. Although of low incidence, grade 3/4 toxicities play a central role. Organs most common for immune-mediated adverse events are skin, liver (hepatitis), kidneys (nephritis), gastrointestinal tract (diarrhea and colitis), lungs (pneumonitis), and endocrine organs (hyper-, hypothyroidism and hypophysitis). Diagnostic workup includes routine laboratory tests (including liver function tests) and may be supplemented with hormone values. In cases of pneumonitis or hypophysitis, imaging (high-resolution CT, MRI) can confirm diagnoses. Immune-mediated toxicities are treated with therapy interruption and administration of corticosteroids (and in individual cases additional immunosuppression). Dose modification is not intended!

[Renaissance of immuno-oncology for urological tumors : Current status]. / Renaissance der Immunonkologie bei urologischen Tumoren : Eine Bestandsaufnahme.

With the advent of immune checkpoint inhibitors, immunotherapy has gained new importance in oncology. Current research is focused on the cytotoxic T­lymphocyte antigen 4 (CTLA4), programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoints. The CTLA4 antibody ipilimumab (melanoma) as well as the PD-1 antibodies nivolumab (melanoma, non-small cell lung cancer and renal cell carcinoma) and pembrolizumab (melanoma) are approved for the treatment of metastatic disease in Europe. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (re)activate the immune system against cancer cells and appear to be more effective than current standards for many tumors. The toxicity profile is favorable but involves new so-called immune-related side effects, which need to be recognized and treated in time. Immune checkpoint inhibitors are also currently being tested in uro-oncology in phase 3 trials relevant for approval status. Based on this it is to be expected that immune checkpoint inhibitors will become a new standard (as monotherapy or as part of combination therapy) in the early lines of therapy in the near future and replace the previous standard therapies, particularly for metastasized renal cell carcinoma and urothelial cancer.

[Flagellate dermatitis after bleomycin chemotherapy in a patient with malignant germ cell tumor]. / Flagellanten-Dermatitis nach Bleomycingabe bei einem Patienten mit malignem Keimzelltumor.

HISTORY AND CLINICAL FINDINGS: A 49-year-old patient with malignant germ cell tumor within the first cycle PEB (platinum [P], etoposid [E] and bleomycin [B]) presented with an itchy linear papular erythema with discrete vesicles. The rash had appeared three days ago i. e. four days after the second application of bleomycin. INVESTIGATIONS: Visual diagnosis of a flagellate dermatitis. TREATMENT AND CLINICAL COURSE: Primary treatment consisted of systemic antihistamines, local and systemic application of steroids. Bleomycin treatment was stopped and substituted by ifosfamide. CONCLUSION: Flagellate dermatitis occurs with an incidence up to 66 % after bleomycin treatment. There is no association between bleomycin dose and incidence or severity of the lesions. Flagellate dermatitis is a self-limiting condition but hyperpigmentation may persist. Similar lesions may occur with bendamustine and docetaxel, the intake of insufficiently cooked shiitake mushrooms as well as in dermatomyositis and Still's syndrome.

Antibacterial activity and endotoxin-binding capacity of Actisorb Silver 220.

Actisorb Silver 220 wound dressing demonstrated a high in vitro endotoxin-binding capacity combined with a marked bactericidal activity without releasing Pseudomonas aeruginosa endotoxins into the environment, and so may be beneficial in the treatment of infected wounds, particularly colonization by Gram-negative bacteria.