Dose escalation study of carboplatin-pemetrexed followed by maintenance pemetrexed for elderly patients with advanced nonsquamous nonsmall-cell lung cancer.

BACKGROUND: This study was designed to determine the recommended dose of carboplatin-pemetrexed in elderly (≥75 years old), chemotherapy-naive patients with advanced nonsquamous nonsmall-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients received escalated doses of carboplatin and pemetrexed every 3 weeks for four cycles. Patients with an objective response and stable disease continued pemetrexed therapy until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity was observed. RESULTS: The combination of carboplatin at an area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) of 5, and 500 mg/m(2) pemetrexed, was determined to be the recommended dose for elderly patients with advanced nonsquamous NSCLC. Of 17 patients, 10 received a median of five cycles of pemetrexed maintenance therapy without unexpected or cumulative toxic effects. The study had an overall response rate of 47.1%. The median progression-free survival time was 142 days (95% confidence interval [CI] 68-216 days) and the median overall survival time was 461 days (95% CI 168-754 days). CONCLUSIONS: This combination was a tolerable and effective regimen, and recommended dose (RD) was carboplatin [area under the curve (AUC) of 5]/pemetrexed (500 mg/m(2)) every 3 weeks, in chemotherapy-naïve, elderly (≥75 years old) patients with advanced nonsquamous NSCLC.

Lymphocytic infundibulo-neurohypophysitis associated with recurrent optic neuritis.

A 38-year-old woman presented with diabetes insipidus. The T1-weighted images showed a loss of the hyperintense signal of the posterior pituitary and thickening of the pituitary stalk. DDAVP was started with the diagnosis of lymphocytic infundibulo-neurohypophysitis (LINH). Three months later, she complained of right visual acuity loss. MRI revealed right optic nerve swelling, compatible with the diagnosis of the retrobulbar optic neuritis. She had two other such episodes in the next 3 months. She developed a transient oculomotor and abducens nerve palsies as well. Each time the symptoms disappeared with corticosteroid therapy. The pituitary stalk became normal in size 6 months later. LINH and recurrent optic neuritis occurred in a short duration. Accordingly, a common causative background is suspected. Since the auto-immune process has been hypothesized as a cause of optic neuritis, our case may present further clinical evidence to support the hypothesis of an auto-immune mechanism for LINH.

Unusual MRI findings in lymphocytic hypophysitis with central diabetes insipidus.

We report an unusual case of lymphocytic hypophysitis, which proved to be cystic at surgery.