Influence of polysorbate 80 (Tween 80) and etoposide (VP-16-213) on the pharmacokinetics and urinary excretion of adriamycin and its metabolites in cancer patients.

Polysorbate 80 (Tween 80) is present in the IV pharmaceutical preparation of VP-16-213 marketed as VePesid (Bristol-Myers) (etoposide 100 mg, benzylalcohol 150 mg, polyethylene glycol 300 3250 mg, citric acid 10 mg, Tween 80 400 mg and absolute alcohol to 5 ml per 100 mg ampule of VP16), to increase its miscibility with blood. We have examined the effects of 400 mg/m2 Tween 80 IV and 100 mg/m2 VP16 on the pharmacokinetics of Adriamycin (ADR, 30 or 40 mg/m2). ADR and metabolite concentrations were measured by HPLC. ADR plasma profiles were best fitted to a bi-exponential decay and a two-compartment open model. Tween 80 did not alter the values of the two ADR half-lives, nor did it affect metabolite kinetics of their urinary excretion. However, in a similar manner and consistently in all patients, both Tween 80 and VP16 increased the volume of distribution of the central compartment for ADR up to 3-fold, decreased the AUC of ADR up to 2-fold and increased its clearance by exactly the same amount. These effects were due to reduced plasma ADR concentrations during the early phase of its kinetics. Urinary excretion of ADR was also increased. In conclusion, VP16 is likely to affect the kinetics of drugs administered with it: early plasma concentrations will fall due to a general physiological effect of Tween 80 on the apparent volume of circulation.

Comparison of serum and cerebrospinal fluid levels of methotrexate in man during high-dose chemotherapy for aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

The relationship between plasma and cerebrospinal fluid levels of methotrexate was studied in five patients, four with aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and one with mixed epithelial mesothelial tumour, who were treated with high-dose methotrexate (1.5 g/m2) as part of combination chemotherapy. Cerebrospinal fluid was sampled for 24 h via a permanent indwelling lumbar catheter. No complications were observed with this technique. In two patients with central nervous system involvement adequate "cytotoxic" levels (greater than 10(-6) M) were obtained for greater than 12 h. The remaining three patients, with no direct evidence of central nervous system involvement, never attained adequate cytotoxic methotrexate levels in the cerebrospinal fluid. Serum levels were therapeutic in all patients. These results suggest that patients with central nervous system tumour involvement may receive adequate doses of methotrexate in the cerebrospinal fluid. Patients with occult central nervous system tumour involvement may not attain adequate cerebrospinal fluid levels. A 24-h serum methotrexate level of greater than 10(-5) M may indicate that patients have achieved therapeutic cerebrospinal fluid levels of methotrexate. Cranial irradiation following chemotherapy is still recommended in this tumour group until adequate cytotoxic levels of methotrexate can be obtained in all patients for prolonged periods.

Etoposide: a pharmacokinetic profile including an assessment of bioavailability.

The pharmacokinetics of intravenous etoposide (50-150 mg m-2) have been studied in 17 patients. Bioavailability studies on either the capsule or intravenous (i.v.) formulation were performed in 13 patients, 7 of whom received both oral formulations given in the dose range 50-250 mg m-2. After i.v. administration the mean +/- SD half-lives were t1/2 alpha 0.62 +/- 1.01 h and t1/2 beta 6.04 +/- 2.5 h. The bioavailability of etoposide was extremely variable: for the capsule it was 38 +/- 14% (range 10-55) and for the i.v. formulation it was 53 +/- 25% (range 31-88). The i.v. formulation was not significantly better than the capsule. The results confirm the low and variable bioavailability of oral etoposide.

A clinical and pharmacokinetic phase I study of 1,2,4-triglycidylurazol (TGU, NSC 332488).

Twenty-six patients with advanced malignancies received TGU given as an intravenous (i.v.) bolus in physiological saline at 3 weekly intervals. The starting dose was 30 mg/m2 with standard graded escalations to 900 mg/m2. Myelosuppression occurred at 800 mg/m2, with a mean nadir of 2.0 +/- 0.8 X 10(9)/l and a mean nadir platelet count of 41 +/- 31 X 10(9)/l. At 800 or 900 mg/m2 nausea and vomiting was WHO grade 0 in 5, grade I in 6, grade II in 11 and grade III in 10 courses of therapy. Alopecia did not occur. TGU was given by i.v. infusion at 800 mg/m2 in 2 patients, both of whom developed severe thrombophlebitis. Five patients given TGU by i.v. bolus developed mild phlebitis. No renal, hepatic or cardiac toxicity was noted. Two patients had partial responses; both had adenocarcinoma of unknown primary origin, one of whom had been resistant to prior therapy with FAM. An HPLC analytical method was developed with a sensitivity of 250 ng/ml. The data from 7 patients studied best fit a one compartment pharmacokinetic model with an exponential decay and a t1/2 of only 2.1 min. In conclusion, the dose limiting toxicity of TGU appears to be myelosuppression and we would recommend a dose of 800 mg/m2 given as an intravenous bolus every 4 weeks for future phase II trials.

T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma of the uterus complicated by Chlamydia trachomatis pneumonia.

This is the first documented case of a T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma arising in the uterus. At presentation, the patient also had a life-threatening pneumonia due to Chlamydia trachomatis which responded to erythromycin and tetracycline. Cytotoxic therapy produced partial tumour regression, but the patient died 14 weeks after diagnosis, probably as a result of intercurrent infection.

Alfacalcidol as a modulator of growth of low grade non-Hodgkin's lymphomas.

Ten patients with low grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (seven follicular small cleaved and three small lymphocytic) were treated with 1 microgram oral alfacalcidol (1 alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol) daily. Of the seven patients with lymphomas of follicular small cleaved subtype, one achieved complete and three partial remission, whereas none of three patients with small lymphocytic lymphomas responded. In seven of the 10 patients, 1,25(OH)2D3 receptors were measured in tissue from lymph nodes, and a positive correlation between the presence and amount of receptor and response to alfacalcidol was found. These preliminary data suggest that alfacalcidol has appreciable antitumour activity in low grade non-Hodgkin's lymphomas.

A randomized trial of oral nabilone and prochlorperazine compared to intravenous metoclopramide and dexamethasone in the treatment of nausea and vomiting induced by chemotherapy regimens containing cisplatin or cisplatin analogues.

Eighty patients receiving their first course of chemotherapy with regimens containing cisplatin or cisplatin analogues entered this open crossover study comparing nabilone 2 mg and prochlorperazine 5 mg given orally every 12 h for four doses against metoclopramide 2 mg/kg loading dose intravenously (i.v.), then 3 mg/kg as an (i.v.) infusion over 8 h and dexamethasone 20 mg (i.v.) over 3-5 min at the time of chemotherapy. There was complete control of nausea and vomiting in 24 patients (32%) given metoclopramide and dexamethasone compared to 14 patients (19%) given nabilone and prochlorperazine. For the 70 patients who completed the crossover assessment of emesis on a linear analogue scale significantly favoured metoclopramide and dexamethasone (P = 0.02). However, there was no overall patient preference for the metoclopramide and dexamethasone combination (nabilone and prochlorperazine 31 vs. metoclopramide and dexamethasone 26; 13 no preference), because a significant proportion of the patients receiving the cisplatin analogue carboplatin preferred nabilone and prochlorperazine (16 vs. 5; 1 no preference; P = 0.013). For patients receiving cisplatin chemotherapy metoclopramide and dexamethasone remains the antiemetic of choice but for regimens containing carboplatin, nabilone and prochlorperazine is better tolerated and preferred by the patients.

TNO-6 has no effect in gastrointestinal cancer: N-acetyl-glucosaminidase shows renal damage.

Twenty-five patients, 16 with gastric cancer and nine with colonic cancer, received TNO-6 30 mg m-2 every four weeks. No objective tumour response was recorded. Nausea and vomiting occurred in 21 patients and was severe in 17. Severe marrow suppression developed in five patients. Renal function was unaffected in all but one patient who developed renal failure, probably as a result of septicaemia. However, the renal tubular enzyme N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase was measured in six patients and showed a rise in all. In this study TNO-6 had no anti-tumour activity in gastrointestinal malignancy, but produced significant renal tubular damage.