Reticulosarcoma occurring during long-term hemodialysis.

Reticulosarcoma occuring during long-term hemodialysis. A case of chronic renal failure due to polycystic disease of the kidneys with development of a reticulosarcoma with cerebral involvement during maintenance hemodialysis is described. Immunosuppression from uremia could have played an important part in tumor induction in this case and might also be a significant factor in the high incidence of de-novo malignancies in renal transplant recipients.

Development of a lymphocytic lymphoma during immunosuppressive therapy with azathioprine for systemic lupus erythematosus with renal involvement induced by phenylbutazone.

A case of systemic lupus erythematosis (SLE) with renal involvement after the administration of phenylbutazone is described. The patient subsequently developed a lymphocytic lymphoma following two years treatment with azathioprine and prednisone. Although the association between SLE, immunosuppressive therapy and the development of lymphomas is well documented, the increased incidence of malignant disease in uremic patients is less well recognized. The varied factors that may have contributed to the development of the lymphoma in this case are discussed, together with a review of the literature.

Reproductive performance of women successfully treated for gestational trophoblastic tumors.

The reproductive performance of 36 women who had been successfully treated for gestational trophoblastic tumors with multiple courses of cytotoxic agents including methotrexate, 6-mercaptopurine, actinomycin D, and 6-azauridine, between 1962 and 1972, has been studied in comparison with 36 patients who had spontaneously aborted a hydatidiform mole but received no treatment and a control group consisting of 36 women attending an antenatal clinic. The majority of patients who wanted further pregnancies following chemotherapy had one or more successful conceptions. The incidence of abnormal pregnancies in the treated group was higher than that of the control group. Similarly, there was a higher number of abnormal pregnancies in the untreated mole patients when compared with the control group. This suggests that patients who develop trophoblastic tumors tend to have a poor obstetric history and that this is not significantly worsened by chemotherapy.

Fatal hypoglycemia after cytotoxic chemotherapy: a report of two cases and a review of the literature.

Two cases, one of leukemia and one of a trophoblastic testicular teratoma, are described in which hypoglycemia occurred as a terminal event. The rarity of this association with these types of malignancy, together with possible mechanism, is discussed in a brief review of the literature.

Collection of lymphocytes on a continuous-flow blood cell separator.

Lymphocytes have been collected by continuous flow leukapheresis from cancer patients (pre-treatment) and stored at -190 degrees C in liquid nitrogen as immunological support for intensive chemotherapy. Described here are methods for obtaining maximum yield and viability. Assessments are made of cell count, both during and after leukapheresis, and of viability just prior to storage.

Primary mediastinal trophoblastic teratomas.

Three cases of primary mediastinal trophoblastic teratoma are described. One patient died from respiratory failure during the initial chemotherapy, Another patient with advanced disease is now apparently free from disease after multiple-drug chemotherapy. The third patient is alive and well four years after a combination of surgery, radiotherapy, and multiple-drug chemotherapy. In the diagnosis and assessment of response to treatment in these tumours emphasis is placed on the measurement of the tumour cell markers, chorionic gonadotrophin and alpha-fetoprotein, by radioimmunoassay. The efficacy of multiple-drug regimens is discussed together with a review of the literature.