Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0033774 (pruritus)
 14,546 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Phase II clinical trials of L-asparaginase of leunase manufactured by "Kyowa" (Japan) was performed in cooperation by 5 institutions of the USSR on 49 patients with various forms of hemoblastosis, including 15 patients aged 1 to 15 and 34 patients aged 16 to 75. The drug was used in a daily dose of 200 IU per 1 kg body weight administered as intravenous drips daily for 2--3 weeks. The daily dose was divided into 2 doses administered at an interval of 12 hours. The efficiency of the treatment did not depend on the patients' sex. Significant efficiency of leunase was observed in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (85.7 per cent). The use of the drug in treatment of adults with systemic malignant blood affections was less effective. Some effects recorded in patients with generalized forms of hematosarcoma were transient. The following side effects were noted: nausea, vomiting in 8 children and 13 adults, allergic reactions in the form of pruritus and rashes in 8 adults, impairment of liver and pancreatic functions in 2 children and 1 adult. Acute pancreatonecrosis was recorded in one child. The effect on the peripheral blood was insignificant. Leunase has probably no advantages as compared to other L-asparaginase preparations.
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PMID:[L-asparaginase study results (phase II of the clinical trials)]. 699 70

Acute hypersensitivity reactions (HSRs) are an unpredictable and potentially catastrophic complication of treatment with chemotherapeutic agents. Reactions may affect any organ system in the body and range widely in severity from mild pruritus to systemic anaphylaxis. Certain classes of chemotherapeutic agents, such as the taxanes, platinum compounds, asparaginases, and epipodophyllotoxins are commonly associated with HSRs. The clinical characteristics of these high risk agents with respect to HSRs are discussed in this review. Protocols to prevent or reduce the severity of these reactions have been developed, but despite these attempts, HSRs will still happen. Should a reaction occur, it is imperative that it be recognised quickly in order to minimise exposure to the inciting agent and implement appropriate therapeutic and supportive measures. When a patient becomes sensitised to a chemotherapeutic agent, avoidance of re-exposure is the mainstay of future prevention. For sensitised patients who have derived clinically meaningful benefit from a particular agent, however, continuation of treatment with the agent is desirable. Options may include attempting a trial of desensitisation or treatment with a related compound. Virtually all patients demonstrating HSRs to paclitaxel and docetaxel are able to successfully tolerate re-treatment following discontinuation and administration of diphenhydramine and hydrocortisone. Re-treatment has generally been less successful with platinum compounds. with recurrent HSRs occurring in up to 50% of patients following desensitisation protocols. Patients sensitised to asparaginase are often able to tolerate the alternative preparations, Erwinia carotovora asparaginase or polyethylene glycol-modified Escherichia coli asparaginase. There is very little experience with re-treatment following sensitisation to the epipodophyllotoxins. As re-treatment may have serious consequences, careful consideration of the risks and benefits of these strategies is imperative when deciding among these options.
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PMID:Prevention and management of antineoplastic-induced hypersensitivity reactions. 1167 4

There is an ever-increasing number of therapeutics used to treat cancer. A recent publication listed 86 currently available antineoplastic medications. Despite this large number, hypersensitivity reactions are not common except with platinum compounds (cisplatin, carboplatin), epipodophyllotoxins (teniposide, etoposide), asparaginase, taxanes (paclitaxel), and procarbazine. Doxorubicin and 6-mercaptopurine are occasionally associated with hypersensitivity reaction. Comparable reactions with other chemotherapeutic agents are. uncommon; many are only anecdotal reports. Reactions associated with individual drugs are discussed in detail. The mechanisms responsible for most of these reactions are not known, as they have generally not been evaluated. The term "hypersensitivity" is widely used in the chemotherapy literature without a common definition. Hypersensitivity is defined here as an unexpected reaction with signs and symptoms not consistent with known toxicity of the drug. Most reactions are coincident with or within hours of drug administration. Almost all are associated with parenteral administration. Symptoms include flushing, alterations in heart rate and blood pressure, dyspnea and bronchospasm, back pain, fever, pruritus, nausea and all types of rashes. Some cases may be due to non-immune mediated release of histamine or cytokines, as many patients can subsequently tolerate re-exposure after pretreatment with steroids and antihistamine, and slow readministration of the drug. This is more compatible with a graded challenge, than desensitization and is generally successful for taxanes, less so for platinum compounds. In most cases hypersensitivity reactions are associated with the specific chemotherapeutic drug. Reaction rates may vary with different forms of the drugs, e.g. pegylated. Occasionally excipients such as Cremaphor EL may induce hypersensitivity reactions.
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PMID:Hypersensitivity reactions to chemotherapeutic drugs. 1272 96