Combination chemotherapy of adult acute lymphocytic leukemia.

Seventeen adults with previously untreated acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) received thioguanine, vincristine, dexamethasone, and pyrimethamine for remission induction. Nine patients (53%) achieved complete and 5 (30%) partial remissions. Once in complete remission patients were given two closely separated consolidation courses followed by monthly maintenance courses of the same regimen with the addition of 1-(2-chloroethyl)-3-cyclohexyl-1-nitrosourea (CCNU) every other month during maintenance therapy. The median duration of complete remission was 176 days (range 38 to 605). The median survival for all patients was 405 days (range 30 to 1,058+). Oral pyrimethamine and CCNU were used for their potential activity as prophylactics against meningeal leukemia. Dexamethasone was used instead of prednisone because of the potential enhancement of granulocyte mobilization by the former. Six patients (35%) developed meningeal leukemia while on initial induction or maintenance therapy, 5 within 6 months of diagnosis. Life-threatening infections occured in 10 patients (59%) during induction. Whereas the regimen effectively induced complete remission in about half of previously untreated adults with ALL, it was not effective in maintenance. The incidence of meningeal leukemia and infection during induction was high. Oral pyrimethamine was inadequate prophylaxis for meningeal leukemia; dexamethasone did not reduce the incidence of serious infection.

Herpes zoster and impaired cell-associated immunity to the varicella-zoster virus in patients with Hodgkin's disease.

Thirty-two patients with Hodgkin's disease and 12 normal donors were studied for their in vitro lymphocyte responsiveness to a membrane-associated varicella-zoster (VZ) antigen. When compared to the normal donors, patients with Hodgkin's disease in whom radiotherapy was recently completed and those with active, recurrent disease had markedly impaired cell-associated immunity to VZ antigen. In addition, there was a suggestion that patients in long-term remission who had received primary combined modality therapy (radiotherapy plus chemotherapy) had an impaired response when compared to normal persons or to patients who had received single modality therapy. Newly diagnosed, untreated patients with Hodgkin's disease did not differ significantly from normal persons as a group but two of six were unresponsive to the VZ antigen whereas all normal subjects were responsive. Most patients in remission for at least one year following therapy had normal in vitro responsiveness. In two patients herpes zoster developed after the demonstration of absent in vitro lymphocyte reactivity to the VZ antigen.

Infection in acute leukemia patients receiving oral nonabsorable antibiotics.

During a 20-month period all acute nonlymphocytic patients (87 patient trials) receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy were placed on an oral nonabsorbable antibiotic regimen consisting of gentamicin, vancomycin, and nystatin in addition to an intensive program of infection prevention aimed at reducing exogenously acquired and body-surface potential pathogens. Although side effects of anorexia, diarrhea, and nausea were common, gentamicin-vancomycin-nystatin was ingested 80% of the study time. Microbial growth in gingival and rectal cultures was substantially reduced. The incidence of bacteremias and other serious infections was low. Pseudomonas aeruginosa, other gram-negative bacilli, and Candida species caused few infections along the alimentary canal, whereas infections of the skin (especially Staphylococcus aureus) were not reduced compared with those occurring in former years. A total of the 104 acquired gram-negative bacilli were gentamicin resistant; 5 subsequently caused infection. Thus, despite certain definite drawbacks, the use of oral nonabsorbable antibiotics to suppress alimentary tract microbial flora in combination with other infection prevention techniques in granulocytopenic cancer patients has proven feasible and tolerable and has been associated with a low order of life-threatening infections.