Prognostic implication of ecto-5'-nucleotidase activity in acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Article Abstract:
Ecto-5'-nucleotidase is an enzyme that is present on the cell surface of white blood cells. This enzyme provides a clear-cut way to distinguish between the myeloid and the lymphoid phenotypes in crises of chronic myelogenous leukemia. Continuing research is investigating the possibility that this enzyme may serve as a useful prognostic marker in leukemia. Unlike most tumor markers and other prognostic factors, ecto-5'-nucleotidase is ubiquitous, and therefore cannot be useful on a present-or-absent basis. However, the enzymatic activity can be quantitatively measured, and the level of activity can serve as a useful marker. The potential application of the enzyme as a prognostic factor in acute lymphoblastic leukemia was evaluated in 71 children and 120 adults. The enzymatic activity was measured by the hydrolysis of radioactive adenosine monophosphate, and lower activity was defined as the hydrolysis of fewer than 10 nanomoles per hour per million cells. Patients with lower activity for this enzyme had a better prognosis than patients with higher levels of activity. However, the enzymatic activity was no longer an independent predictor of outcome when the immunologic subtype of the leukemia was taken into account. The prognostic correlation of the enzymatic activity differed depending on the immunologic subtype of the leukemia, however, and the authors believe that this fact will have value when testing for ecto-5'-nucleotidase is included in the battery of other tests performed on cells from leukemia patients. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Cancer
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0008-543X
Year: 1990
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Carboplatin in childhood brain tumors: a Children's Cancer Study Group Phase II trial
Article Abstract:
Cisplatin is used in the treatment of many types of solid tumors; it is active against several types of brains tumors in children, but it also causes serious side effects. Carboplatin, an analogue of cisplatin, causes less nausea and vomiting than cisplatin and is also less toxic for the ears and kidneys. However, carboplatin is more toxic than cisplatin for the bone marrow. A study of the effectiveness of carboplatin was undertaken of 95 children under 22 years of age with primary brain tumors which had either failed to respond to previous therapy or recurred. Sixty-seven of the patients were evaluable at the conclusion of the study; partial responses were seen in 1 of 19 patients with brainstem glioma, in 2 of 14 patients with ependymoma, and in 4 of 20 patients with medulloblastoma or primitive neuroectodermal tumor. Two patients with medulloblastoma or primitive neuroectodermal tumor achieved complete responses. None of 20 patients with high-grade astrocytoma achieved a response. Twenty-one patients had been previously treated with a regimen including cisplatin; responses were found to be less likely among this group. The authors suggest that carboplatin warrants further investigation in the treatment of brain tumors in children. They point out, however, that a direct comparison between cisplatin and carboplatin is difficult since the differences in toxicity make it difficult to determine what doses of the two different drugs should be regarded as comparable. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)
Publication Name: Cancer
Subject: Health
ISSN: 0008-543X
Year: 1990
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