康艾注射液联合化疗治疗中晚期非小细胞肺癌的临床研究

目的:观察康艾注射液在中晚期非小细胞肺癌综合治疗中的作用。方法:将78例中晚期非小细胞肺癌患者随机分为治疗组(n=40)和对照组(n=38)。治疗组用康艾注射液加化疗,并与单纯化疗组进行对照。两组化疗方案相同。结果:治疗组近期有效率为72.5%,而对照组为47.4%,两组比较差异有显著性(P<0.05);治疗组和对照组患者的生活质量karnofsky评分的好转率分别为87.5%和55.3%,两组比较差异有显著性(P<0.01);对照组和治疗组患者治疗后血象均降低,但以对照组更为明显,差异有显著性(P<0.01);结论:康艾注射液可以明显提高中晚期非小细胞肺癌患者的近期疗效和生活质量,减少血象降低的几率。     

Essential Oils and Antioxidants Derived From Citrus By-Products in Food Protection and Medicine: An Introduction and Review of Recent Literature

After a brief overview of the general production, market value, and uses of citrus by-products, this literature review will focus on the most highly refined “pharmaceutical grade” citrus oils and antioxidants that have been derived from peels or other fruit parts. Citrus oils have been used as a part of the perfume industry and in the practice of alternative medicine for a long time, but now there is a great deal of mainstream food processing and drug industry interest in them owing to the rediscovery or confirmation of some of their beneficial properties, as well their development for entirely new applications. Their roles as antimicrobial, immunomodulatory, and cancer chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic agents appear promising.     

Characterization of the biological behaviour of appendicular osteosarcoma in Rottweilers and a comparison with other breeds: a review of 258 dogs*

The purpose of this retrospective study was to compare Rottweilers diagnosed with osteosarcoma (OSA) with other breeds to determine whether Rottweilers experienced a more aggressive form of the disease. Two hundred and fifty‐eight dogs were evaluated (102 clinical and 156 necropsy cases). In the necropsy population, Rottweilers had a younger mean age at death (7.3 versus 9 years, P= 0.006). There were no significant differences between Rottweilers and other breeds in age at diagnosis, median disease‐free interval or survival time. However, Rottweilers were more likely to have metastasis to the brain (7 versus 0%, P= 0.03). These results suggest that OSA in Rottweilers may have a different biological behaviour, but this study did not confirm that these differences were associated with a worse outcome.     

Attempts to eliminate <Emphasis Type="Italic">Candidatus</Emphasis> phytoplasma phoenicium from infected Lebanese almond varieties by tissue culture techniques combined or not with thermotherapy

Elimination of Candidatus phytoplasma phoenicium from two infected Lebanese varieties of almond by using different tissue culture techniques is reported. Except for the oxytetracycline therapy which totally inhibited the development of explants, stem cutting cultures associated with thermotherapy, shoot tip cultures associated or not with thermotherapy, and shoot tip micrografting were all suitable, either for shoot regeneration or for elimination of phytoplasma from the two varieties. However, stem cutting culture coupled with thermotherapy seemed to be the most effective for regeneration of phytoplasma-free plantlets.     

A Survey of the Literature (1995–1999) on the Kinetics of Drugs in Camels (Camelus dromedarius)

Recent publications dealing mainly with the kinetics of antiparasitic and antibacterial agents, NSAIDs, and other drugs in camels are briefly reviewed. The kinetic data for most of these drugs indicated that they have longer absorption and elimination half-lives and slower systemic clearance in the camel compared to other animals. This corroborates earlier reports that suggested that the activities of drug-metabolizing enzymes and the capacity to biotransform and eliminate xenobiotics is lower in camels than in other ruminants. There is a clear need to establish basic kinetic data for the camel in order to avoid extrapolation of drug dosage regimens and withdrawal times from data for other animals, as this may result in irrational use of drugs in camels.     

A combined protocol with piroxicam,chemotherapy, and whole pelvic irradiation with simultaneous boost volumetric modulated arc radiotherapy for muscle-invasive canine urinary transitional cell carcinoma: First clinical experience

The aims of this pilot study were to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of high-dose hypofractionated volumetric modulated arc radiotherapy (VMAT) applied to whole pelvic region radiotherapy (WPRT) with multilevel simultaneous integrated boost (MLSIB) combined with piroxicam and chemotherapy for the treatment of canine transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the lower urinary tract with muscle invasion TCC. Twelve dogs were enrolled, according to stage, in two groups: group 1, TCC confined to the urinary tract; group 2, TCC with metastasis. The planning target volume dose was tailored from 36 to 42 Gy in 6 fractions. All dogs were prescribed piroxicam and radiosensitizing carboplatin, and six received chemotherapy after radiotherapy. Serial follow-ups with computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging were performed. Disease control and toxicity effects were evaluated according to the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors and Veterinary Radiation Therapy Oncology Group criteria. The treatment was well tolerated, and no high-grade side effects were reported. The median overall survival times for groups 1 and 2 were 1,230 and 150 days, respectively. A considerable percentage of patients in group1 (50%) were still alive at the time of writing this paper, and a longer follow-up could enable a more accurate survival analysis. This preliminary analysis shows that VMAT applied to the WPRT with MLSIB is an effective and safe option for dogs with lower urinary TCC, although the presence of metastases worsens the prognosis.     

Fasting reduces the incidence of vincristine‐associated adverse events in dogs

Fasting has been shown to decrease chemotherapy‐associated adverse events (AEs), in part through insulin‐like growth factor (IGF‐1) reduction, and may induce a protective effect on normal cells during chemotherapy treatment in mice and people. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of fasting on constitutional, bone marrow and gastrointestinal (GI) AEs, and serum glucose, IGF‐1 and insulin levels in dogs receiving vincristine. The study was a prospective, crossover clinical trial in tumour‐bearing dogs. Dogs were randomized to be fasted for 24 to 28 hours prior to and 6 hours following their first or second vincristine treatment, and fed normally for the alternate dose. A significant reduction in nausea, anorexia, lethargy and serum insulin was observed when dogs were fasted; however, no significant differences were found in other GI symptoms, neutrophil count, serum glucose or IGF‐1. Fasting prior to vincristine therapy is a safe and effective treatment modality that helped mitigate constitutional and GI AEs in tumour‐bearing dogs.     

Drug dose and drug choice: Optimizing medical therapy for veterinary cancer

Although novel agents hold great promise for the treatment of animal neoplasia, there may be room for significant improvement in the use of currently available agents. These improvements include altered dosing schemes, novel combinations, and patient‐specific dosing or selection of agents. Previous studies have identified surrogates for “individualized dose intensity,”, for example, patient size, development of adverse effects, and pharmacokinetic parameters, as potential indicators of treatment efficacy in canine lymphoma, and strategies for patient‐specific dose escalation are discussed. Strategies for treatment selection in individual patients include conventional histopathology, protein‐based target assessment (eg, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, and mass spectrometry), and gene‐based target assessment (gene expression profiling and targeted or global sequencing strategies). Currently available data in animal cancer evaluating these strategies are reviewed, as well as ongoing studies and suggestions for future directions.     

CCNU (lomustine) toxicity in dogs: a retrospective study (2002-07)

Objective To describe the incidence of haematological, renal, hepatic and gastrointestinal toxicities in tumour‐bearing dogs receiving 1‐(2‐chloroethyl)‐3‐cyclohexyl‐1‐nitrosourea (CCNU). Design The medical records of 206 dogs that were treated with CCNU at the Melbourne Veterinary Specialist Centre between February 2002 and December 2007 were retrospectively evaluated. Results Of the 206 dogs treated with CCNU, 185 met the inclusion criteria for at least one class of toxicity. CCNU was used most commonly in the treatment of lymphoma, mast cell tumour, brain tumour, histiocytic tumours and epitheliotropic lymphoma. Throughout treatment, 56.9% of dogs experienced neutropenia, 34.2% experienced anaemia and 14.2% experienced thrombocytopenia. Gastrointestinal toxicosis was detected in 37.8% of dogs, the most common sign of which was vomiting (24.3%). Potential renal toxicity and elevated alanine transaminase (ALT) concentration were reported in 12.2% and 48.8% of dogs, respectively. The incidence of hepatic failure was 1.2%. Conclusions CCNU‐associated toxicity in dogs is common, but is usually not life threatening.     

CHOP chemotherapy for the treatment of canine multicentric T-cell lymphoma

Dogs with multicentric T-cell lymphoma are commonly treated with CHOP chemotherapy protocols that include cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of CHOP chemotherapy for dogs with multicentric T-cell lymphoma. Identification of prognostic factors in this specific subset of dogs was of secondary interest. Twenty-three out of 24 dogs responded to CHOP chemotherapy and these dogs remained on the protocol for a median of 146 days. No variable was associated with progression free survival (PFS) including stage, substage, hypercalcemia or radiographic evidence of a cranial mediastinal mass. The median overall survival time (OST) for all dogs was 235 days. Dogs that were thrombocytopenic at presentation experienced a significantly longer OST (323 versus 212 days, P=0.01).