[Clinical Study to Determine the Dose Intensity of BEP Chemotherapy for Ovarian Malignant Germ Cell Tumors].

A standard regimen for ovarian malignant germ cell tumors is bleomycin, etoposide, cisplatin(BEP)chemotherapy. Adherence to a treatment schedule of every 21 days has been reported to be important. However, the incidence of febrile neutropenia( FN)and the optimaluse of granulocyte-colony stimulating factor(G-CSF)are unclear because of the low incidence of ovarian malignant germ cell tumors. We experienced 2 cases of ovarian malignant germ cell tumors that received BEP therapy after fertility-conserving surgery. In 1 case, we delayed drug administration in the first cycle because of FN. However, in order to maintain dose intensity(DI), we performed chemotherapy every 21 days by shortening the rest period. Myelosuppression may be severe in the first cycle of BEP therapy; however, it may be possible to adhere to the treatment schedule by using primary prophylactic administration of G-CSF.

[Recurrent ovarian cancer with cancer peritonitis treated with weekly paclitaxel infusion--a clinicopharmacological study].

We treated a patient with recurrent ovarian cancer with cancerous peritonitis by weekly paclitaxel (w-TXL) therapy (65 mg/m2). Abdominocentesis was not performed to eliminate ascites, in order to maintain higher quality of life (QOL), and critical adverse reaction was not seen for 12 months. We measured the TXL concentration in blood plasma and ascites after TXL infusion by HPLC method. The TXL titer in plasma was 427 ng/ml after infusion, 23 ng/ml after 24 hours and under 10 ng/ml after 48 hours. The TXL titer in ascites was 41 ng/ml after infusion, 37 ng/ml after 6 hours, 18 ng/ml after 12 hours, 10 ng/ml after 24 hours and under 10 ng/ml after 48 hours. TXL transportation from blood to ascites was good. This result suggested that intravenous infusion of TXL was effective for cancerous peritonitis treatment.

[A case of ovarian cancer with Parkinson's disease treated by combined chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin followed by surgery].

It is well known that neuropathy, myelopathy, and arthropathy are specific adverse effects induced by paclitaxel administration. Parkinson's disease is neural degenerative disease, and the influence of paclitaxel administration on patients with Parkinson's disease is unknown. We have successfully treated an ovarian cancer patient with Parkinson's disease by paclitaxel/CBDCA combined chemotherapy after surgery. The patient was a 57-year-old woman with solid and cystic ovarian tumor. Among the tumor markers CA125, CA19-9, and SLX, only SLX was elevated. We operated and made a pathological diagnosis of the ovarian tumor as clear cell adenocarcinoma (FIGO stage Ic). After surgery, the patient was treated with paclitaxel (260 mg [175 mg/m2]) and CBDCA (600 mg [AUC = 5]) combined chemotherapy for 5 courses. Her status is complete remission. During chemotherapy, she had felt the decreased efficacy of her Parkinson's disease medication. We could continue chemotherapy by increasing the dose of the Parkinson's drug. There is only one case report on the influence of paclitaxel on Parkinson's disease, in which the course was similar to the present case.

Prediction of outcomes of assisted reproduction treatment using the calcium ionophore-induced acrosome reaction.

BACKGROUND: Sperm concentration and motility are poor predictors of the outcome of intrauterine insemination (IUI), hysteroscopic intratubal insemination (HIT), or complete fertilization failure (CFF) in conventional IVF. We investigated whether the calcium ionophore-induced acrosome reaction (AR) constitutes an additional indicator of CFF and pregnancy that is independent of these semen parameters. METHODS: Infertile couples with no female factor (n=388) and women with tubal obstruction (n=32) were studied: IVF (n=133), ICSI (n=72), HIT (n=245) and IUI (n=61). The percentage of acrosome-reacted sperm in relation to viable sperm was calculated. Receiver operating characteristic curve and multiple logistic regression analyses were used to determine threshold values and the best predictor for CFF and pregnancy. RESULTS: Threshold values of AR for predicting CFF in IVF and pregnancy in IVF and HIT + IUI were 21, 26 and 22% respectively. These values were independent of the conventional semen analysis parameters. CFF was lower (2 versus 20%; P<0.01) and the pregnancy rate was higher (46 versus 24% P<0.05) for those with AR >21% in IVF. CFF and pregnancy rate in ICSI did not differ according to AR. Pregnancy rate was higher for those with an AR >22% for HIT + IUI (23 versus 11% P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Ionophore-induced AR appears to be a useful indicator in addition to routine semen analysis for selection of patients for treatment with appropriate assisted reproduction procedure.