Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0036690 (sepsis)
 59,461 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Trimetrexate (TMTX) is an analog of methotrexate and a potent inhibitor of the enzyme dihydrofolate reductase. In this phase I study, TMTX was given intravenously to 32 patients as a constant infusion over 24 hours every 28 days. The maximum-tolerated dose of TMTX was 200 mg/m2, with myelosuppression as the dose-limiting toxicity. Other toxicities included nausea and vomiting, stomatitis, erythema and phlebitis at the site of infusion, rash and skin hyperpigmentation, and elevated serum hepatic enzymes. Two drug-related deaths occurred secondary to leukopenia and sepsis. Twenty-six patients were evaluable for antitumor response. Twenty-one patients had progressive disease, while three patients had disease stabilization. There were two partial responses observed--one in a patient with breast cancer and a second in a patient with nasopharyngeal carcinoma. TMTX pharmacokinetics were studied in 15 patients. The drug had a mean terminal half-life of 13 hours. Steady-state was not achieved during the 24-hour infusions. Only 6% of the parent compound was excreted unchanged in the urine, and CSF levels averaged less than 2% of simultaneously measured plasma levels. A dose of 150 mg/m2 is recommended for phase II trials of TMTX using this 24-hour infusion schedule.
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PMID:A phase I and pharmacokinetic study of trimetrexate using a 24-hour continuous-injection schedule. 214

Fifty-one patients with advanced germ cell malignancy who had either failed to achieve complete remission with initial cisplatin, vinblastine, and bleomycin chemotherapy or who had relapsed after complete response (CR) to this therapy and then proven refractory on retreatment, were treated with etoposide (75 mg/m2 for 3 days), dactinomycin (1 mg/m2 day 1), and methotrexate (30 mg/m2 day 1) (EAM) every 3 weeks. Courses were continued until maximum response without empirical limit, and if complete remission was achieved, two courses of consolidation therapy were given before cessation of treatment. Thirteen patients (25%) were complete responders with residual masses containing fibrosis or benign teratoma being subsequently resected in seven patients. Two patients had persisting viable carcinoma within residual masses that were completely resected, leaving no evidence of disease (NED); the combined CR plus NED rate was 29%. The only pretreatment factor significantly influencing this response rate was tumor volume. Toxicities were moderate, with leukopenia being observed in 28% of patients, but it was severe in only 2%. There was one death from septicemia. Severe nausea and vomiting occurred in only 9% of patients and treatment-related stomatitis was observed in 42%. All patients achieving CR plus NED have been followed for a minimum of 5 years and no relapses have occurred, suggesting that these patients are cured. Unlike other regimens of salvage chemotherapy, this treatment program did not contain cisplatin and it is contended that a completely noncrossresistant drug regimen based on etoposide provides the opportunity to further improve the curability of patients with advanced germ cell cancer.
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PMID:Effective salvage chemotherapy with etoposide, dactinomycin, and methotrexate in refractory germ cell cancer. Australasian Germ Cell Trial Group. 215 92

A prospective study was conducted to assess the safety and efficacy of the addition of oral verapamil to intravenous Adriamycin (doxorubicin) for the management of patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). All 28 patients studied had histologically verified disease, and cirrhosis was present in 20 of the 21 patients with adequate tissue sampling. The overall median survival was 57 days. Chemotherapy was terminated in seven patients after one course of treatment. Partial response and complete response were noted in four patients (19%) and one patient (4.8%), respectively, among the 21 patients evaluated. Side effects related to the chemotherapy were present in all patients studied. Death from fulminating sepsis occurred in three of the 13 patients with leukopenia. Symptomatic myocardial dysfunction developed in one patient. The addition of verapamil apparently did not potentiate the tumoricidal effect of systemic Adriamycin on HCC but probably did increase its complications.
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PMID:Doxorubicin for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma. A prospective study on the addition of verapamil. 216 94

Five cancer patients undergoing intravenous infusions of human recombinant tumor necrosis factor (TNF)alpha were evaluated for the effects these infusions had on the priming of circulating neutrophils for hypochlorous acid (HOCl) production. These patients were also studied for changes in temperature, circulating white blood cell counts, blood pressure, and spontaneous monocyte interleukin 1 beta (IL-1 beta) and TNF production. As predicted by previous in vitro studies, patient neutrophils increased their HOCl production to unopsonized zymosan from a baseline of 29.2 +/- 5.9 nmol I- oxidized/4 x 10(6) cells to a peak of 64.2 +/- 9.8 nmol I- oxidized/4 x 10(6) cells at 4 h after TNF infusion (P less than 0.01). Similar increases were also seen at 4 h with phorbol myristic acetate and opsonized zymosan as the stimuli. The priming effect could be reproduced in neutrophils from a normal individual by incubating them with the 30-min serum samples from the infused patients. The ability of this serum to prime neutrophils was completely blocked by a monoclonal anti-TNF alpha-antibody but not by an anti-IL-1 beta antibody. In addition to the priming of their neutrophils, patients also experienced fever, marked hypotension, and an initial fall, followed by rebound to an elevation, in circulating white blood cell counts. The TNF infusions did not produce detectable circulating IL-1 beta nor did they induce significant production of TNF or IL-1 beta by circulating blood monocytes. These studies confirm the role of TNF in producing the signs of sepsis such as hypotension, fever, and leukopenia followed by leukocytosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Tumor necrosis factor infusions in humans prime neutrophils for hypochlorous acid production. 217 55

A novel sequential administration schedule of PALA (N-phosphonoacetyl-L-aspartate) and thymidine to enhance the cytotoxic effect of 5-fluorouracil (5FU) was tested in 36 patients with advanced gastric cancer and 21 patients with advanced poorly differentiated (anaplastic) colorectal cancer. The potency of 5FU was dramatically increased as indicated by the observation of dose-limiting leukopenia at less than one tenth the maximum tolerated dose of 5FU when given as a single agent by intravenous bolus technique. Twenty-five percent of gastric cancer patients and 33% of colorectal cancer patients experienced an objective tumor response, including three patients with complete response. However, response duration was brief (median, 6 months), and there were four treatment-related fatalities due to severe and unpredictable leukopenia leading to sepsis. Survival was short with a median of 6 months for gastric cancer patients and 3 1/2 months for colorectal cancer patients. We conclude that therapeutic index of 5FU was not improved by the addition of PALA and thymidine in this patient population based on considerations of objective tumor response rate, patient survival, and toxicity.
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PMID:A clinical trial of biochemical modulation of 5-fluorouracil with N-phosphonoacetyl-L-aspartate and thymidine in advanced gastric and anaplastic colorectal cancer. 220 30

Two Pediatric Intergroup Ewing's Sarcoma studies of patients with metastatic disease (IESS-MD) have used multimodal therapy consisting of intensive combination chemotherapy and radiation therapy (XRT) to areas of gross disease detected at the time of diagnosis. In IESS-MD-I, conducted from 1975 to 1977, 53 eligible patients were entered and received the chemotherapeutic agents vincristine, Adriamycin (doxorubicin; Adria Laboratories, Columbus, OH), cyclophosphamide, and dactinomycin with concomitant XRT (VACA + XRT). In IESS-MD-II, conducted from 1980 to 1983, 69 eligible patients were entered and received 5-fluorouracil (5FU) in addition to the chemotherapeutic agents of IESS-MD-I; initial intensive chemotherapy was given and XRT was delayed until week 10 (VACA + 5FU, delayed XRT). The best response rate (complete and partial remissions combined) was 73% in IESS-MD-I and 70% in IESS-MD-II, so there was no statistical evidence of a difference in response rates (P = 0.62). The length of best response also was similar between studies (P = 0.79), with approximately 30% of the patients on both studies remaining in remission at 3 years. The percentage of patients surviving 5 years or more was 30 on the first study and 28 on the second study (P = 0.49). The major sites of relapse after a response were lung and bone, each occurring with nearly equal frequency. The age of the patient was related to both best response rate and survival: patients 10 years of age or younger had substantially higher response and survival rates than patients 11 years of age or older. The favorable prognosis for younger patients might be explained by a more favorable distribution of primary sites at diagnosis; 39% of patients 10 years of age or younger had rib primary sites, compared with only 16% for patients older than 10 years of age (P = 0.05). The frequency of life-threatening toxicity was substantially higher in IESS-MD-I (30%) than in IESS-MD-II (9%), but the frequency of fatal toxicity was similar (6% to 7%). Fatal complications included Adriamycin-induced cardiomyopathy, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, unspecified pneumonitis, and sepsis. The most common toxicity and complications were leukopenia and infections.
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PMID:Ewing's sarcoma metastatic at diagnosis. Results and comparisons of two intergroup Ewing's sarcoma studies. 220 33

To elucidate the role of leukocytes in intravascular clotting in patients with septicemia, plasma levels of thrombin-antithrombin III complex (TAT), soluble fibrin monomer complex (SFMC) and fibrinogen (Fbg) were determined in 33 patients with septicemia. Twenty out of 33 patients revealed a marked leukopenia (leukocyte count was less than 1,000/microliters) due to suppression of hematopoiesis by the administration of chemotherapeutic agents for the treatment of hematological malignancies. Thirteen out of 33 patients showed normal or increased leukocyte counts. Plasma levels of TAT and SFMC in septicemic patients with leukopenia were significantly lower than those in patients whose leukocyte counts were higher than 1,000/microliters. Plasma fibrinogen levels were significantly lower in patients whose leukocyte counts were higher than 1,000/microliters than those in patients with leukopenia. Plasma TAT levels were found to correlate well with the number of leukocytes in these patients with the correlation coefficient (R) of 0.67 (p less than 0.001). Significantly high positive correlation was observed between plasma TAT levels and the number of monocytes (R = 0.92, p less than 0.001). Significant correlation was also observed between plasma SFMC levels and the number of monocytes (R = 0.72, p less than 0.001). No significant correlation was found between the number of platelets and TAT levels. These findings suggest that leukocytes (especially monocytes) play a critical role in activating intravascular coagulation in septicemic patients.
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PMID:[Studies on the role of leukocytes in the activation of intravascular coagulation in septicemia]. 220 43

We conducted a prospective, randomized trial to study the efficacy and tolerance of long-term versus short-term treatment with recombinant interferon alfa-2a in patients with chronic hepatitis B. Ten patients were randomly assigned to a 6-month interferon regimen, and 10 patients were assigned to a 3-week interferon trial. Eleven patients (five assigned to long-term treatment and six to short-term treatment) did not complete interferon therapy: eight had either severe thrombocytopenia or neutropenia; one had pronounced fatigue in relationship to administration of interferon; one had spontaneous bacterial peritonitis and sepsis and died; and one had a massive fatal variceal hemorrhage during interferon therapy. Most of the serious hematologic complications occurred in patients with cirrhosis and hypersplenism. In one patient, seroconversion to hepatitis B virus DNA negativity occurred before the onset of treatment. Four of the five patients able to complete the 6-month interferon regimen and only one of four patients able to complete the 3-week trial had seroconversion to hepatitis B virus DNA negativity. Thus, we conclude that the therapeutic response was better among patients who were able to complete a 6-month interferon trial. In patients with cirrhosis and hypersplenism, development of either severe thrombocytopenia or leukopenia associated with interferon therapy precluded completion of treatment.
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PMID:Long-term versus short-term treatment with recombinant interferon alfa-2a in patients with chronic hepatitis B: a prospective, randomized treatment trial. 221 80

In sheep, endotoxin (LPS) causes pulmonary hypertension, hypoxemia, leukopenia, exudation of protein-rich lung lymph, reduced dynamic compliance (Cdyn), and increased resistance to airflow (RL), changes similar to those seen in human sepsis and sepsis-induced ARDS. We used well-described methods in the awake sheep-endotoxin model to evaluate the effectiveness of a commercially manufactured antibody to prevent the physiologic changes of endotoxemia. In awake sheep with chronic lung lymph fistulas, we used a whole-body plethysmograph to measure Cdyn, RL, and FRC. Pulmonary artery, left atrial, and systemic arterial pressures were recorded continuously. Arterial blood gases (for calculating AaPO2), leukocyte counts, and lymph samples were collected every 30 min. Animals received a 30-min (2 mg/kg) infusion of antiendotoxin antibody 4 h before LPS (0.75 micrograms/kg) challenge (n = 4), or were given a mixture of LPS (0.75 micrograms/kg) and antibody (2 mg/kg) that had been incubated in vitro at 37 degrees C for 30 min before infusion (n = 6). A control group given only 2 mg/kg of antibody (n = 4) showed no change in any measured parameter, whereas control animals receiving LPS alone (n = 6) exhibited a typical endotoxin response. In all animals receiving endotoxin, Cdyn declined by approximately 50% within 30 to 60 min, and RL increased approximately sixfold over a similar time course. Accompanying the abnormalities in lung mechanics were pulmonary hypertension, leukopenia, and widening of the AaPO2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Studies of an antiendotoxin antibody in preventing the physiologic changes of endotoxemia in awake sheep. 222 82

We investigated the effects of two different Gram-negative bacteria and radiation-induced leukopenia on endotoxemia, cardiovascular abnormalities, and mortality in a canine model of septic shock. Serial hemodynamics were measured in conscious dogs using radionuclide heart scans and thermodilution cardiac output catheters. Plasma endotoxin concentrations were determined with a chromogenic Limulus amebocyte lysate assay. Viable Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Escherichia coli implanted intraperitoneally produced concordant hemodynamic patterns of septic shock (p less than 0.01). Endotoxin concentrations were more than tenfold lower in dogs infected with P aeruginosa compared with E coli (p less than 0.0001). Despite lower endotoxin levels, P aeruginosa-infected dogs had a higher mortality (p less than 0.01), more severe hypotension (p less than 0.05), and greater depression of the left ventricular ejection fraction (p less than 0.05) than dogs with E coli sepsis. A nonlethal E coli challenge combined with leukopenia (induced by a nonlethal dose of radiation) resulted in a mortality of 60 percent (p less than 0.01) without greater cardiovascular dysfunction or higher endotoxin concentrations. These findings suggest that bacterial products other than endotoxin and host-related factors may be important contributors to the toxicity, cardiovascular instability, and mortality of Gram-negative septic shock. Quantitative determinations of plasma endotoxin are unlikely to correlate with the clinical severity of septicemia in heterogeneous patient populations infected with different Gram-negative organisms.
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PMID:Pseudomonas aeruginosa compared with Escherichia coli produces less endotoxemia but more cardiovascular dysfunction and mortality in a canine model of septic shock. 224 91


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