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J L Spiess

Publications and source records attributed to J L Spiess.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Efficacy of high-dose oral leucovorin and 5-fluorouracil in advanced colorectal carcinoma. Plasma and tissue pharmacokinetics.

Thirty-one evaluable patients with advanced colorectal cancer were treated with oral leucovorin (LV) 500 mg/m2, administered hourly in four divided doses weekly for 6 weeks. Six patients received intravenous 5-FU at 450 mg/m2 and the remainder at 600 mg/m2 weekly for 6 weeks. This schedule was repeated after a 2-week rest period without medication. None of the patients had received previous chemotherapy. The results of the study showed a overall complete remission (CR) and partial remission (PR) of 45%. All responding patients received the 600-mg/m2 dose of 5-FU. There were five CR and nine PR. An additional seven (23%) patients had stable disease. Two of the seven received the 450-mg/m2 dose of 5-FU and the remainder received 600 mg/m2. The median disease-free interval for CR patients exceeded 25 months, while the interval for PR patients was 11.8 months. The median survival for CR patients was over 26.7 months and 16.5 months for the PR patients. The median survival for stable patients was 9.5 months and 5.5 months for patients with progressive disease. Toxicity included diarrhea in 70% of patients, excess lacrimal secretion in 35%, and nausea and vomiting in 25% There were no treatment-related deaths in this group. The authors conclude from this Phase I study that the optimal 5-FU dose in 600 mg/m2 combined with high-dose oral leucovorin for the treatment of advanced colorectal carcinoma.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Multiple myeloma presenting with spinal cord compression.

The clinical features, treatment, and course of 6 patients with multiple myeloma, who presented initially with spinal cord compression, are reviewed. These 6 represent 12% of all patients with myeloma seen at our institution since 1979. Eighty-three similar patients were identified from the medical literature. There are no patient characteristics predictive for this presentation. A higher than expected proportion of patents have clinically localized disease, but progression to myelomatosis is common. As these patients present without a known diagnosis of malignancy, a prompt, invasive diagnostic procedure and the immediate institution of definitive local therapy is mandatory. Despite such an aggressive approach, the prospect for significant return of neurologic function is poor. Survival does not appear to be different from that of other patients with myeloma. Unlike other malignancies, a presentation with cord compression is not inconsistent with long-term survival, although significant morbidity secondary to the resultant functional disability can be expected.

Adult↗

Evaluation of ethanol as an antiemetic in patients receiving cisplatin.

Nausea and vomiting are common complications of cisplatin chemotherapy. Patients with a history of chronic, heavy alcohol intake experience less nausea and vomiting from cisplatin than do those who are not heavy drinkers. Four patients being treated with cisplatin who had not obtained satisfactory control of nausea and vomiting with high-dose metoclopramide were given intravenous ethanol to alleviate their symptoms. In each case, the control of nausea and vomiting was inferior to that previously achieved with metoclopramide. It is concluded that acute ethanol administration has no clinically significant antiemetic effect in patients receiving cisplatin.

Cisplatin↗