Yeu‐Tsu N. Lee

Distribution of adriamycin in cancer patients. Tissue uptakes, plasma concentration after IV and hepatic IA administration

Twenty patients with solid tumors received 30 mg/M2 of adriamycin. Various tissue samples were intra‐operatively obtained from 18 patients, about 1.5–5 hours after an intravenous (IV) bolus dose. Normal liver showed the highest levels of adriamycin uptake (2.3–19.8 μg/g); lymph nodes were second; muscle and bone marrow, next; fat and skin had the lowest adriamycin uptake (0.04–0.40 μg/g). Tumor tissue, excluding that with much necrosis and hemorrhaging, had adriamycin concentrations which approximated those of the liver (1.1–9.2 μg/g). Six patients, all with hepatic malignancies, had prolonged plasma concentration studies after IV administration; 5 also had adriamycin administered directly into the hepatic artery catheter. Adriamycin‐plasma‐time courses were similar, whether the drug was administered by bolus directly into the hepatic artery or peripheral vein. The concentration of metabolites after hepatic intraarterial administration was definitely higher than that after IV administration. Patients with hepatic dysfunction had delayed plasma clearance and secondarily elevated levels approximately 160 and 300 minutes after administration.

Bone scanning in patients with early breast carcinoma: Should it be a routine staging procedure?

Bone scanning is a sensitive test for the detection of metastatic breast cancer, but not all abnormal findings on bone scan are diagnostic of skeletal metastasis. Recent studies have found a relatively low rate (≤5%) of abnormal scans in patients with Stage I and II breast cancers, and only half of those with positive scans subsequently had documented bony metastasis. The overwhelming clinical experiences summarized here question the value of including bone scanning as part of the routine work‐up of patients with early breast cancers.

Peripheral B- and T-lymphocyte counts in patients with sarcoma and breast carcinoma.

Peripheral B‐ and T‐lymphocyte counts were studied in 50 patients before they received any therapy for their conditions: 16 had carcinoma of the breast; 8 soft tissue sarcoma; and 26, benign disease. Among 11 males, the six patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma had significantly lower percentages of T lymphocytes than five patients with benign conditions. And six female patients with advanced breast cancers had significantly higher numbers of B lymphocytes than the 10 patients with early breast malignancies. Pertinent reports in the literature were reviewed and discussed. Presently, the clinical and prognostic values of quantitative study of T and B lymphocytes remain to be defined. Cancer 40:667–671, 1977.