Showing papers by "Armando Santoro published in 1990"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors evaluated the therapeutic activity and toxicity of doxorubicin plus ifosfamide in previously untreated patients with advanced soft tissue sarcoma.
75 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a new treatment plan consisting of early bilateral lung exploration and resection through median sternotomy in all cases of sarcoma with resectable lung metastases, including synchronous or previously resected ones, was adopted.
Abstract: In the attempt to apply salvage surgery to the majority of patients with pulmonary tumour relapse, we have adopted a new treatment plan consisting of early bilateral lung exploration and resection through median sternotomy in all cases of sarcoma with resectable lung metastases, including synchronous or previously resected ones. The present paper summarizes the early results achieved with this technique in 56 consecutive patients treated between 1985 and 1988. Perioperative mortality was zero, and morbidity negligible. Occult contralateral metastases were resected in about one third of subjects with monolateral clinical lesions. Overall actuarial survival from first pulmonary resection is 51% at 2 years and 35% at 3 years. A slightly more favourable trend is evident for solitary lesions but the difference is not statistically significant. No difference in survival is observed in relation to the initial disease-free interval or to the histological type. The majority of relapses occurred within 6 months of sternotomy (23/35) and were confined to the lungs (21/35). Ten of these 21 patients with pulmonary relapse have undergone further resection and 5 of them are alive, with a median survival of 28 months. Present results are encouraging as far as resectability and early recurrence rate are concerned. Median sternotomy appears a most valuable therapeutic approach to pulmonary metastases from sarcomas, being safe and effective in local control of disease, and compatible with further surgical management of pulmonary recurrences.
51 citations
TL;DR: It is suggested that median sternotomy and early management of occult contralateral disease may contribute to an improvement in the long-term survival of patients with metastatic sarcomas.
22 citations
TL;DR: Preliminary results seem to suggest that melatonin may have a role in the treatment of MDS induced by previous cancer chemotherapy, and no effect was seen on hemoglobin concentration.
Abstract: Experimental studies have suggested that the pineal hormone melatonin, in addition to its documented antineoplastic action, plays a role in the physiological regulation of blood cell proliferation. Based on these data, we evaluated the clinical effects of melatonin therapy in patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) secondary to cancer chemotherapy for primary neoplasms. The study was carried out on six patients, and melatonin was given orally at a dose of 20 mg/daily, following a schedule prepared to reproduce the circadian rhythm of the pineal hormone. A transient improvement in platelet and neutrophil count was achieved in two of five patients with thrombocytopenia and in two of four patients with neutropenia before therapy, respectively, while no effect was seen on hemoglobin concentration. Mean survival time was 12.5 months, and a long survival, greater than 30 months, was achieved in two of six patients. These preliminary results seem to suggest that melatonin may have a role in the treatment of MDS induced by previous cancer chemotherapy.
16 citations
TL;DR: The presence of a normal karyotype together with the morphological, cytochemical and immunophenotypical characterisation was consistent with a diagnosis of non-neoplastic specimens.
Abstract: A cytogenetic study was performed in 27 patients suspected of t-MDS or t-ANLL. In 12 patients the diagnosis of t-MDS or t-ANLL was confirmed by morphological, cytochemical and immunophenotypical analysis. The cases were classified as RA (one), RAEB (four), CMML (two), ANLL (five). They had received chemotherapy and/or RT for Hodgkin's disease (eight cases), solid tumours (three cases) and multiple myeloma (one case). Clonal chromosome abnormalities were found in bone marrow or peripheral blood cells in all the 12 cases. Five patients had a clonal abnormality of chromosome no. 5 (monosomy, deletions, translocation and inversion of 5q). The critical region on chromosome no. 5 comprised bands q12-q34. Monosomy and deletion of chromosome 7q was observed in the other two patients. In the six remaining patients various karyotypic patterns were observed including a t(4;11) (q21;q23) in one case, monosomies (four cases) and trisomies (one case) of different chromosomes. In the other 15 cases, the presence of a normal karyotype together with the morphological and immunophenotypical characterisation was consistent with a diagnosis of non-neoplastic specimens.
14 citations
TL;DR: CIV seems a moderately effective regimen in NSCLC, but unlikely to provide an advantage over the widely employed two-drug combination of CDDP and VP-16.
Abstract: Twenty-five patients with advanced non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) were treated with a multidrug regimen (CIV) consisting of ifosfamide (IFX), cisplatin (CDDP), and etoposide (VP-16). Twenty-four patients were evaluable for response. An objective response was detected in eight cases (33%), including one case with complete tumor response. Median duration of response was 31 weeks, and median overall survival 46 weeks, with no significant difference between responders and nonresponders. Myelosuppression and gastrointestinal side effects represented the main toxic manifestations; a toxic death and an ischemic cardiac episode were also observed. CIV seems a moderately effective regimen in NSCLC, but unlikely to provide an advantage over the widely employed two-drug combination of CDDP and VP-16.
3 citations
1 citations