Dieter Rauch

Adding cetuximab to capecitabine plus oxaliplatin (XELOX) in first-line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer: a randomized phase II trial of the Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research SAKK

BACKGROUND To determine the activity and tolerability of adding cetuximab to the oxaliplatin and capecitabine (XELOX) combination in first-line treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer (MCC). PATIENTS AND METHODS In a multicenter two-arm phase II trial, patients were randomized to receive oxaliplatin 130 mg/m(2) on day 1 and capecitabine 1000 mg/m(2) twice daily on days 1-14 every 3 weeks alone or in combination with standard dose cetuximab. Treatment was limited to a maximum of six cycles. RESULTS Seventy-four patients with good performance status entered the trial. Objective partial response rates after external review and radiological confirmation were 14% and 41% in the XELOX and in the XELOX + Cetuximab arm, respectively. Stable disease has been observed in 62% and 35% of the patients, with 76% disease control in both arms. Cetuximab led to skin rash in 65% of the patients. The median overall survival was 16.5 months for arm A and 20.5 months for arm B. The median time to progression was 5.8 months for arm A and 7.2 months for arm B. CONCLUSION Differences in response rates between the treatment arms indicate that cetuximab may improve outcome with XELOX. The correct place of the cetuximab, oxaliplatin and fluoropyrimidine combinations in first-line treatment of MCC has to be assessed in phase III trials.

A Laboratory Test Setup for in Situ Measurements of the Dielectric Properties of Catalyst Powder Samples under Reaction Conditions by Microwave Cavity Perturbation: Set up and Initial Tests

The catalytic behavior of zeolite catalysts for the ammonia-based selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of nitrogen oxides (NOX) depends strongly on the type of zeolite material. An essential precondition for SCR is a previous ammonia gas adsorption that occurs on acidic sites of the zeolite. In order to understand and develop SCR active materials, it is crucial to know the amount of sorbed ammonia under reaction conditions. To support classical temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) experiments, a correlation of the dielectric properties with the catalytic properties and the ammonia sorption under reaction conditions appears promising. In this work, a laboratory test setup, which enables direct measurements of the dielectric properties of catalytic powder samples under a defined gas atmosphere and temperature by microwave cavity perturbation, has been developed. Based on previous investigations and computational simulations, a resonator cavity and a heating system were designed, installed and characterized. The resonator cavity is designed to operate in its TM010 mode at 1.2 GHz. The first measurement of the ammonia loading of an H-ZSM-5 zeolite confirmed the operating performance of the test setup at constant temperatures of up to 300 °C. It showed how both real and imaginary parts of the relative complex permittivity are strongly correlated with the mass of stored ammonia.

Correlating the Integral Sensing Properties of Zeolites with Molecular Processes by Combining Broadband Impedance and DRIFT Spectroscopy : A New Approach for Bridging the Scales

Zeolites have been found to be promising sensor materials for a variety of gas molecules such as NH3, NOx, hydrocarbons, etc. The sensing effect results from the interaction of the adsorbed gas molecules with mobile cations, which are non-covalently bound to the zeolite lattice. The mobility of the cations can be accessed by electrical low-frequency (LF; mHz to MHz) and high-frequency (HF; GHz) impedance measurements. Recent developments allow in situ monitoring of catalytic reactions on proton-conducting zeolites used as catalysts. The combination of such in situ impedance measurements with diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS), which was applied to monitor the selective catalytic reduction of nitrogen oxides (DeNOx-SCR), not only improves our understanding of the sensing properties of zeolite catalysts from integral electric signal to molecular processes, but also bridges the length scales being studied, from centimeters to nanometers. In this work, recent developments of zeolite-based, impedimetric sensors for automotive exhaust gases, in particular NH3, are summarized. The electrical response to NH3 obtained from LF impedance measurements will be compared with that from HF impedance measurements, and correlated with the infrared spectroscopic characteristics obtained from the DRIFTS studies of molecules involved in the catalytic conversion. The future perspectives, which arise from the combination of these methods, will be discussed.

Combination of bevacizumab and 2-weekly pegylated liposomal doxorubicin as first-line therapy for locally recurrent or metastatic breast cancer. A multicenter, single-arm phase II trial (SAKK 24/06)

BACKGROUND pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) and bevacizumab are active agents in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer (MBC). We carried out a multicenter, single-arm phase II trial to evaluate the toxicity and efficacy of PLD and bevacizumab as first-line treatment in MBC patients. METHODS bevacizumab (10 mg/kg) and PLD (20 mg/m(2)) were infused on days 1 and 15 of a 4-week cycle for a maximum of six cycles. Thereafter, bevacizumab monotherapy was continued at the same dose until progression or toxicity. The primary objective was safety and tolerability, and the secondary objective was to evaluate efficacy of the combination. RESULTS thirty-nine of 43 patients were assessable for the primary end point. Eighteen of 39 patients (46%, 95% confidence interval 30% to 63%) had a grade 3 toxicity. Sixteen (41%) had grade 3 palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia, one had grade 3 mucositis, and one severe cardiotoxicity. Secondary end point of overall response rate among 43 assessable patients was 21%. CONCLUSIONS in this nonrandomized single-arm trial, the combination of bimonthly PLD and bevacizumab in locally recurrent and MBC patients demonstrated higher than anticipated toxicity while exhibiting only modest activity. Based on these results, we would not consider this combination for further investigation in this setting.

The effect of Cu and Fe cations on NH3-supported proton transport in DeNOx-SCR zeolite catalysts

Proton transport studies revealed the different influence of Fe and Cu cations on the NH3–zeolite interaction and the NO–zeolite interaction in the presence of adsorbed NH3. At low temperatures, after NH3 saturation, Cu-ZSM-5 is more reactive than Fe-ZSM-5 for NO activation forming highly mobile NH4+ intermediates.

Detection of coke deposits on a fixed-bed catalyst by a contactless microwave method: first measurements

The aim of this work is to investigate a novel contactless in-operando microwave-based measurement technique for the detection of coke deposits in industrial fixed-bed catalysts. Their steel reactors serve as cavity resonators for microwaves. Due to coke loading, the electrical conductivity of the catalyst pellets increases strongly. This leads to changes in the resonance behavior that are mirrored by the scattering parameters. The regeneration of the coked catalyst by coke burn-off is examined as well.