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Mark Harries

Publications and source records attributed to Mark Harries.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

A phase II study of weekly docetaxel in patients with anthracycline pretreated metastatic breast cancer.

BACKGROUND: Docetaxel has significant activity in metastatic breast cancer and weekly schedules are associated with less myelosuppression than 3-weekly schedules. We evaluated the toxicity and the activity of weekly docetaxel in anthracycline-pretreated patients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 42 patients were studied. Treatment consisted of docetaxel 35 mg/m2 weekly as a 30-min infusion for 6 weeks followed by a 2-week rest, with dexamethasone 8 mg i.v. pre-medication and 4 mg orally 12-hourly for 48 h following treatment. RESULTS: The median age of the patients was 53 years (range 34-74). Twenty-six (62%) patients had received prior chemotherapy for advanced disease. Patients received a median 10 weeks of treatment (range 1-24). 11 had a partial response (ORR 26%; 95% CI 13-39%), five of whom had relapsed <12 months since the end of previous anthracycline-based chemotherapy. In addition six patients (14%) had stable disease for >16 weeks. Myelosuppression was rare with only 2 patients (5%) experiencing grade 3 neutropenia (no grade 4 neutropenia). Non-haematological grade III toxicities were as follows: fatigue 17%, neuropathy 0%, hyperlacrimation 5%, stomatitis 7%, diarrhoea 14%, and cutaneous toxicity 19%. Skin toxicity consisted of limb/palmar-plantar erythematous reactions, or fixed-plaque erythrodysaesthesia. CONCLUSIONS: Weekly docetaxel has moderate activity in women with anthracycline pre-treated breast cancer. Although the level of myelosuppression is lower than 3-weekly regimens, this weekly regimen cannot be recommended due to the significant non-haematological toxicities associated with the treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Near drowning.

Explore the source record for details and available documents.

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation↗
PubMed2003

Capsazepine protects against neuronal injury caused by oxygen glucose deprivation by inhibiting I(h).

Cell death mechanisms frequently involve the influx of extracellular calcium through voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels, e.g., the NMDA receptor (Greene, 1999). The vanilloid receptor (VR1) is present in regions of the brain (Mezey et al., 2000) that are highly susceptible to neurodegenerative insults, suggesting that this ion channel might contribute to the cellular processes involved in neuronal death. We tested the effects of VR1 ligands in the oxygen glucose deprivation (OGD) model of cell death in organotypic hippocampal slice cultures. The VR1 agonist capsaicin at concentrations that are selective for VR1 did not affect cell viability per se or the extent of neurodegeneration induced by the OGD insult. In contrast, the VR1 antagonist capsazepine (0.1-10 microm) significantly reduced the amount of OGD-induced cell death. However, capsazepine was still neuroprotective in slices prepared from VR1 knock-out mice, which exhibited the same degree of neurodegeneration to that observed in slices prepared from wild-type mice, excluding the possibility that it afforded neuroprotection through inhibition of VR1. Instead, capsazepine inhibited the hyperpolarization-activated nonspecific cation channel generated current I(h) in a concentration range similar to that which was neuroprotective. Furthermore, the specific I(h) blocker ZD-7288 was also neuroprotective, mirroring the effects of capsazepine, in that it was effective at preventing cell death when applied either during or after the OGD insult. These results demonstrate that capsazepine affords neuroprotection through inhibition of I(h) rather than inhibition of VR1.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

Changes in bone mineral density in the hip and spine before, during, and after the menopause in elite runners.

This study was undertaken to determine the degree of interaction between hormonal and athletic effects on changes in bone mineral density (BMD, g/cm(2)) with time in women around the menopause. Thirty-five elite female runners aged over 40 participated in a longitudinal cohort study of hip and spine bone density changes and had two measurements a mean of 4.1 years apart. Eighteen remained estrogenized throughout the study (E+ to +), ten remained postmenopausal throughout (E- to -), while seven showed a change in status (E- to +) or (E+ to -). At study exit, both postmenopausal E+ and E- subjects had significantly higher than expected broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA) and velocity of sound (VOS) values at the calcaneus. However, Z-score 95% confidence intervals for BMD of the hip and spine embraced zero except at the femoral trochanter in E+ women. The E+ to + group did not lose bone at any site. The E- to - group lost bone significantly, but only at the femoral neck and spine at rates close to 1% annually. Multiple analysis of variance repeated measures analysis showed a significant interaction in the effects of estrogen exposure with DXA measurement site, with the femoral trochanter being less affected by E- status than the spine and femoral neck. Body mass index (BMI: weight/height(2), kg/m(2)) had a significantly positive effect on total hip and femoral neck BMD independently of estrogen status. In conclusion, in this pilot study, postmenopausal elite runners not on hormone replacement therapy lost BMD from the femoral neck and spine at the expected rates but in the femoral trochanter bone loss appeared reduced and in the calcaneus BUA and VOS were maintained close to young normal values.

Absorptiometry, Photon↗
PubMed2003

Gemcitabine, cisplatin and methylprednisolone chemotherapy (GEM-P) is an effective regimen in patients with poor prognostic primary progressive or multiply relapsed Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

This study was designed to assess the efficacy and safety of gemcitabine, cisplatin and methylprednisolone (GEM-P) for patients with relapsed or refractory Hodgkin's disease (HD) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Twenty-one patients were treated with gemcitabine (1000 mg/m2 d 1, 8 and 15), cisplatin (100 mg/m2 d 15) and methylprednisolone (1000 mg d 1-5) given every 28 d. Of these, 20 patients were evaluable for response. The median age was 38 years (range 17-64 years). Histological subtypes were: nodular sclerosing HD (n = 10), diffuse large B cell (n = 5), T cell-rich B cell (n = 2), follicular (n = 2), mantle cell (n = 1) and enteropathy-associated T-cell lymphoma (n = 1). The median remission duration prior to receiving GEM-P was only 42 d. The overall objective response rate was 80%[95% confidence interval (CI): 56-94%], including five complete and 11 partial responses. GEM-P induced responses in all histological subtypes, primary progressive disease and patients who had received a previous autograft. The only grade 3-4 toxicity was myelosuppression. However, no cases of febrile neutropenia or haemorrhage with thrombocytopenia were encountered. Median survival has not yet been reached and survival probability at 1 year was 60.8% (95% CI: 31.9-80.5%). In conclusion, GEM-P is a novel combination salvage therapy for poor-prognostic primary progressive or multiply relapsed lymphoma patients. It has clinically significant activity with a favourable toxicity profile.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Part I: chemotherapy for epithelial ovarian cancer-treatment at first diagnosis.

Ovarian cancer leads to more deaths than any other gynaecological cancer in the more developed countries. During the past 30 years, survival has increased owing to improvements in diagnosis, surgery, and chemotherapy. Despite these advances, most patients will die from the disease, and the overall 5-year survival is less than 50%. Most patients with ovarian cancer need cytotoxic chemotherapy. Platinum agents (cisplatin and carboplatin) are the most important drugs to be included in first-line regimens. Randomised trials have recently confirmed the benefit of the addition of taxanes to platinum, and the standard of care has become the combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel. However, unanswered questions remain over the optimum schedule, duration, and intensity of treatment, and the benefit or otherwise of the addition of other drugs to carboplatin and paclitaxel. The roles of intraperitoneal therapy and consolidation treatment after first-line chemotherapy are as yet undefined.

Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic↗
PubMed2002

Part II: chemotherapy for epithelial ovarian cancer-treatment of recurrent disease.

For women with advanced ovarian cancer, rates of response to first-line chemotherapy are high but most patients have relapses and become candidates for further chemotherapy. Chemotherapy for recurrence can palliate symptoms, and there is some evidence that it can also improve survival in this clinical situation. Patients who relapse quickly after first-line therapy should not be given the same drugs as were used initially. However, for patients who have longer intervals from treatment to relapse, the rates of response to a rechallenge with platinum are clinically significant. Several cytotoxic drugs have shown activity in patients whose disease has relapsed after therapy with platinum and a taxane; these drugs include topotecan, etoposide, pegylated liposomal doxorubicin, epirubicin, gemcitabine, altretamine, oxali platin, and vinorelbine. Recurrent ovarian cancer is also an important setting in which to test investigational agents with promising activity, such as new platinum compounds, new taxanes, and other cytotoxic agents, as well as non-cytotoxic compounds with novel mechanisms of action.

Female↗