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Rubidazone was used as sole chemotherapy in 170 adults and children with acute leukemia and sarcoma. When rubidazone was employed to treat the first attack, complete remission was achieved in : 1) 40 out of 70 patients (57%) with AML; 2) two out of six patients with AML where previous chemotherapy had failed; 3) four out of five patients with ALL; 4) 12 out of 14 patients with acute monoblastic leukemia. When used to treat relapse, rubidazone produced complete remission in : 1) 14 out of 31 cases of AML; 2) 18 out of 39 cases of ALL; 3) 2 out of 3 cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Treatment of a case of rhabdomyosarcoma was unsuccessful. In the treatment of acute myeloblastic and monoblastic leukemias, it may be concluded that rubidazone induces a higher rate of complete remission than any other previously reported drug which was used alone. It also achieves remission rates similar to those resulting from a combination of daunorubicin and Ara-C. Furthermore, when compared with daunorubicin, rubidazone allows better control of the induction of aplasia.

Two hundred and four untreated patients with Hodgkin's disease were given 6 monthly courses of combined therapy with nitrogen mustard, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone (MOPP), followed by monthly vinblastine (protocol H2 65). Fifty of these patients were non-randomly selected to receive complementary or prophylactic irradiation to large fields, either supradiaphragmatic (28 cases), subdiaphragmatic (7 cases) or both of these (15 cases). Similarly, 50 other patients were chosen to receive reinductions with MOPP every three months during the first year, then every 6 months. All treatment was stopped after four years. Splenectomy was not performed routinely but 19 patients underwent splenectomy to define precisely the stage of their disease. Review of lymphography led to reclassification of 37 patients to that of stage II; 91% of whom entered remission, 48% being complete. Of the 109 stage III patients, 52% had a complete remission and 38% a partial remission (P.R.). Of stage IV patients, 40% obtained a C.R. and 26% a P.R. Remission curves reached a plateau at the 42nd month: 74 ± 6% for those who entered into C.R. and 56 ± 8% for those with a P.R. (P < 0·03). These patients have been at risk for more than 42 months and 14 have been followed for periods between 5 and 8 years. Other factors may have influenced these results: increased age (more than 50 years) greatly decreased the rate of remission (P < 0·001); the more advanced the anatomical stage the worse the prognosis: but paradoxically, histological lymphocytic depletion (L.D.) had a better prognosis than other types (P < 0·02). The clinical signs (A or B) did not influence the duration of the remission, but abnormalities in the parameters of biological activity (b) worsened the prognosis (P < 0·01). Patients who were given complementary radiotherapy had a longer remission (P < 0·001). A relapse occurred in 38 patients, but never after the 42nd month. In 21 cases, the relapse occurred in the lymphatic areas which had been involved initially, and in the other 17, there was visceral involvement. In addition, there was a correlation between histological cell type and mode of recurrence: local recurrences occurring predominantly in lymphocytic predominance (L.P.), nodular sclerosis (N.S.) and widespread relapses occurring in mixed cellularity (M.C.) and (L.D.). The overall survival reached a plateau at the 48th month of 72 ± 10%, this being influenced by the same factors as the remission. However, the beneficial effects of complementary irradiation (P < 0·05) and reinductions (P < 0·05) were certain. Thus the value of polychemotherapy is confirmed. Prognosis in Hodgkin's disease may be related directly to the administration of polychemotherapy before the radiotherapy. These two modalities must be used in flexible association dependent on the staging which must include all the parameters.

All authors contrast the poor prognosis of acute granulocytic leukemias (AGLs) with the progress achieved in acute lymphocytic leukemias (ALLs). However, many advances have already been made in the treatment of this disease: the median survival remains poor with present chemotherapy, but survival has been shown to be directly related to the attainment of a complete remission (CR). The indications for such intensive treatment must be individualized according to the age of the patient and the morphological findings of the leukemia. Cytological classification of AGLs is difficult. The cytology of acute promyelocytic and acute monoblastic leukemias (APLs and AMoLs) is now well characterized, but the term acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML) still includes various cytological variants. We shall deal first with the treatment of AML with an overt maturation arrest (high rate of poorly differentiated cells); then we shall consider the specific problems raised by APL and AMoL and the difficulties