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Cisplatin today is a cornerstone of combination chemotherapy for ovarian cancer. Carboplatin seems equal to cisplatin in antitumour activity, but has a different toxicity profile. After a feasibility study, a randomized phase III study in ovarian cancer stage II, III, and IV was undertaken, comparing carboplatin with cisplatin in combination with cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin and hexamethylmelamine. Preliminary analysis of this study reveals no statistically significant difference in response rate. Notwithstanding equal haematological toxicity, the other side effects evoked by carboplatin in combination treatment are much milder than those evoked by cisplatin. Further analysis will be necessary to draw definite conclusions about the results obtained.

The aim of the workshop was to reach a consensus on issues of importance to future collaborative research. An international staging system was accepted for hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer, based on the percent of hepatic replacement by tumor (PHR). The value of the various imaging techniques in assessing the PHR was discussed. Agreement was reached on criteria for response and on eligibility criteria for nonsurgical treatment, whereas discussion remained on eligibility criteria for resection. Finally the importance was stressed of the need for no-treatment-control-groups and for a 'matrix' for future hepatic metastases protocols, delineating objectives, staging procedures, criteria for response, follow-up procedures and statistical analysis of the data.

Mean bleeding time in 11 uraemic patients improved from 11.2 (range 3.5--20) before the 5.8 (range 2.5--20) minutes during CAPD treatment (p less than 0.025). Bleeding time became normal in six out of seven patients with a prolonged bleeding time prior to CAPD. There was a concomitant improvement in platelet aggregation. Mean platelet count rose from 195 (range 117--414) to 311 (148--522) x 10(9)/L (p less than 0.01). A significant correlation was found between the change in bleeding time and in platelet aggregation induced by ristocetin, but not between the change in bleeding time and the platelet count. Our results suggest that CAPD treatment improves the uraemic bleeding tendency, even in patients on previous haemodialysis treatment.

This report describes the results of the comparison of three different methods and three monoclonal antibodies to stain cells in suspension for incorporated bromodeoxyuridine and total DNA content. The procedures were tested in three different experimental tumour cell lines. The sensitivity of the different procedures was expressed as the ratio of the anti-BrdUrd fluorescence intensities of the S and G1 phase cells (FS/FG1 ratio). There were remarkable differences in sensitivity between the different procedures. With the heat denaturation the most favourable FS/FG1 ratio's were obtained but substantial cell loss occurred during this procedure which is a disadvantage for clinical application. With the pepsin digestion + acid denaturation procedure cell loss was negligible. The standard acid denaturation procedure was inferior to the other two methods. Using the pepsin digestion + acid denaturation procedure we examined the variations in sensitivity for the different monoclonal antibodies and cell lines and the influence of BrdUrd concentration, labelingtime and cell concentration. The binding characteristics for the various antibodies differed considerably in our hands. Only with the IU4 antibody we obtained FS/FG1 ratio's comparable with those described in the literature. No difference was observed between the cell lines. Variation in cell concentration between 1 x 10(4) to 1 x 10(6) ml nor BrdUrd concentration appeared to influence the sensitivity of the procedure. A labelingtime of 1 h or even 30 min seems to be more than sufficient for an optimal FS/FG1 ratio. Our results indicate that using the appropriate antibody and immunofluorescence BrdUrd can be detected by flow cytometry, after incorporation into the DNA of tumour cells under a wide range of culture conditions.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

In this article the pharmacological management of accidental drug overdose is discussed, with various treatments for overdose proposed, as supported by clinical facts and speculation. Current knowledge is outlined concerning dacarbazine, nitrosourea compounds, melphalan, procarbazine, cyclophosphamide, VP-16.213, l-asparaginase (colaspase), 6-mercaptopurine, mustine (nitrogen mustard), intravenous or intrathecal methotrexate (amethopterin), cytarabine (cytosine arabinoside), fluorouracil and bleomycin.

A summary of a workshop held to synthesize the essential elements constituting protocols for the study of new treatments for patients with hepatic metastases is reported. An attempt was made to formulate a consensus on issues of importance in future collaborative research. A staging system was proposed that was though to be usable by clinicians. The eligibility requirements for surgical resection of hepatic metastases and for the nonsurgical treatment of hepatic metastases is discussed. Criteria for the response to treatment were formulated. The selection of appropriate control groups for new treatment strategies was discussed.