Arthur A. Billings

Acute nephrotoxicity following cis‐dichlorodiammine‐platinum

The effects of a single dose of cis‐diamminedichloroplatinum (DDP) on the kidney function were investigated in 14 patients with disseminated malignancy and normal renal function. A single dose of DDP (30–50 mg/m2) caused severe proximal tubular dysfunction with increased urinary losses of calcium, magnesium, and amino acids. Phosphate excretion was not affected. DDP can cause proximal tubular dysfunction and close attention must be paid to serum calcium and magnesium levels.

Response to secondary therapy in patients with adenocarcinoma of the breast previously treated with adjuvant chemotherapy

The response to secondary therapy, chemotherapy or hormonal, is examined in 26 patients with adenocarcinoma of breast who failed adjuvant chemotherapy. Response rates to tamoxifen or combination chemotherapy, cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, and 5‐FU (CMF) or Adriamycin and vincristine (AV) were similar to response rates reported for Stage IV patients, never exposed to cytotoxic agents. Survivals in these 26 patients were similar to those reported for Stage IV patients never exposed to cytotoxics. It is concluded that adjuvant chemotherapy does not lessen future response to secondary therapies or decrease survival.

Immunologic Status of Patients in Remission from Hodgkin’s Disease and Disseminated Malignancies

ABSTRACT: The immunologic phenotypes of peripheral blood lymphocytes of 20 patients cured of Hodgkins disease (Group I) and of 20 patients cured of diverse, disseminated malignancies (Group II) were compared. Eleven patients in Group I had an increase in circulating B lymphocytes, and 6 patients in Group II had a decrease in this lymphocyte subset (0.0005 < p <0.0125). The T4/T8 lymphocyte ratio was less than 1.0 in eight patients in Group I and in no patients in Group II (p <0.001). These statistically significant differences between the two groups were unrelated to type or duration of therapy, and thus suggest basic biologic differences between the immune status of cured Hodgkins disease patients and cured patients with other malignancies.

Survival of patients with lung cancer treated with vincristine and actinomycin D. An unsuccessful trial

Twenty‐five patients with lung cancer were treated with actinomycin‐D and vincristine (V‐D) with only one objective response (IMD). The survival of these patients was compared retrospectively to a group of 49 consecutive patients treated with radiotherapy only during the same time period. Median survival times for the V‐D group and radiotherapy controls were 6.5 and 7.5 months, respectively. It is concluded that V‐D did not increase survival in patients with lung cancer and should be dropped from the chemotherapeutic armamentarium in lung cancer.