Prognosis of Childhood Leukemia

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1969 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 1056-1058
Author(s):  
Richard C. Stein ◽  
Arthur R. Ablin ◽  
Joseph H. Kushner ◽  
Seymour Zoger

We have been troubled by what we judge to be inaccurate assessments of the current prognosis of acute leukemia in childhood. These assessments have appeared in the lay press: Saturday Evening Post, June 1, 1968, "It is quite possible . . . that median survival of patients now starting treatment will be between 4 and 5 years;" Time, March 4, 1969, "now . . . the average survival time is about 5 years in major medical centers" and in such medical journals as J.A.M.A., Medical Tribune, Cancer Research, and so forth, where in a number of artides in the last 2 years median survivals of 3 years or longer are stated as current or shortly to be obtained.

2020 ◽  
Vol 113 (5) ◽  
pp. 2540-2545
Author(s):  
G Resquín-Romero ◽  
C Cabral-Antúnez ◽  
H Sarubbi-Orue ◽  
I Garrido-Jurado ◽  
P Valverde-García ◽  
...  

Abstract Three strains of fungi belonging to the genus Metarhizium Sorokīn (ARSEF 4556, ARSEF 3297, native strain) were assayed against adults and nymphs of the Neotropical brown stinkbug Euschistus heros (F.) and the green-belly stinkbug Dichelops furcatus (F.). The most virulent strain, ARSEF 4556, caused over 90% mortality. The average survival time of the second and fifth instar nymphs and adults following immersion in 1 × 108 conidia ml−1 was 4.8, 5.7, and 5.2 d, respectively. The second instar nymphs were more susceptible than the adults. The LC50 values and median survival times for second instar and adult E. heros were 1.6 × 107 and 3.1 × 107 conidia ml−1 and 6 and 8 d, respectively. Eggs of E. heros and the closely related stinkbug, D. furcatus, were highly susceptible to ARSEF 4556 with the mean mortality of eggs immersed in 1 × 108 conidia ml−1 being 77.4% and 89.7%, respectively. The strain 3297 showed also good aptitudes for stinkbugs control with mortalities higher than 80% against nymphs and adults and eggs mortalities of 75.5% for E. heros and 79.6% for D. furcatus. This study has shown that it is possible to have a two-pronged control strategy, targeting adults and to reduce oviposition and targeting egg clusters to prevent emergence and dispersal of nymphs. Besides early instars of nymphs have been shown to be more susceptible to the fungal strains than late instars and adults.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-112
Author(s):  
Marian Manciu ◽  
Sorour Hosseini ◽  
Joscelyne Guzman-Gonzalez

Background: Statistical methods commonly used in survival analysis typically provide the probability that the difference between groups is due to chance, but do not offer a reliable estimate of the average survival time difference between groups (the difference between median survival time is usually reported). Objective: We suggest a Maximum-Entropy estimator for the average Survival Time Difference (MESTD) between groups. Methods: The estimator is based on the extra survival time, which should be added to each member of the group, to produce the maximum entropy of the result (resulting in the groups becoming most similar). The estimator is calculated only from time to event data, does not necessarily assume hazard proportionality and provides the magnitude of the clinical differences between the groups. Results: Monte Carlo simulations show that, even at low sample numbers (much lower than the ones needed to prove that the two groups are statistically different), the MESTD estimator is a reliable predictor of the clinical differences between the groups, and therefore can be used to estimate from (low sample numbers) preliminary data whether or not the large sample number experiment is worth pursuing. Conclusion: By providing a reasonable estimate for the efficacy of a treatment (e.g., for cancer) even for low sample data, it might provide useful insight in testing new methods for treatment (for example, for quick testing of multiple combinations of cancer drugs).


Blood ◽  
1958 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 1126-1148 ◽  
Author(s):  
EMIL FREI ◽  
JAMES F. HOLLAND ◽  
MARVIN A. SCHNEIDERMAN ◽  
DONALD PINKEL ◽  
GEORGE SELKIRK ◽  
...  

Abstract A comparative clinical trial of two regimens of combination chemotherapy has been accomplished in acute leukemia by four separate medical and pediatric services. Sixty-five patients were allocated at random to one of two treatment programs. Daily administration of methotrexate with daily 6-mercaptopurine has been compared to methotrexate every third day in the same total dose with daily 6-mercaptopurine. No difference in frequency of remission, extent of remission or toxicity was observed between the two groups. Among those patients who attained remission status, however, duration of remission (P = .05-.10) and of survival (P = <.05) was longer for the continuous group. All remissions in children occurred in acute lymphocytic leukemia, whereas all remission in adults were observed in acute myelocytic leukemia. The duration of remissions was somewhat shorter for children with acute lymphocytic leukemia than for adults with acute myelocytic leukemia. The frequency of remission, either partial or complete, was higher in children, however (36 per cent), than in adults (19 per cent), although the confidence limits for each figure overlap. The duration of acute leukemia in previously untreated patients did not influence response to therapy from the two antimetabolite regimens in this study. In patients who had had prior antimetabolite therapy, however, complete remissions were attained less often than in previously untreated patients. The toxic manifestations encountered during the administration of these antimetabolites are described. Seventeen deaths occurred during this study, of which 8 occurred in the first 10 days, presumably from leukemia and not drug toxicity. Five patients died with hypoplastic marrows ascribed to drug toxicity. The toxic manifestations were qualitatively and proportionately the same in patients who attained remission status, and in those patients who failed to remit, but who lived long enough to recognize the onset of remission if it were going to occur. No indication was obtained, therefore, that patients who attained remission were subjected to a greater toxic hazard, in order to achieve the therapeutic benefits observed, than those who did not remit. The median survival of patients who achieved remission was longer (p <.05) than for patients who did not remit. Since the survival time of remitters from relapse to death was almost identical with the survival time of nonremitters from onset of treatment to death, this difference can be accounted for by the time spent in remission and getting to remission. The median survival time from symptomatic onset for all children in this study was 12 months, and for adults, 7 months. The median in children is similar to that reported from other clinics. This is evidence that a comparative therapeutic trial in acute leukemia can be accomplished without recognizable compromise of patient welfare.


2002 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 503 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Göth ◽  
Uwe Vogel

Megapode chicks live independently from the time of hatching and are thus ideal subjects for investigations into how the lack of parental care can affect chick survival. Here, we present such results for chicks of the Australian brush-turkey (Alectura lathami), radio-tracked in two smallremnant rainforest patches (Mary Cairncross Rainforest Park and Aplin Forest) from their second day of life. Mortality was 88–100% during the first three weeks after hatching. It did not differ between two breeding seasons at Mary Cairncross Rainforest Park, as evident from comparisons of average survival time (in days) and Kaplan–Meier survival estimates. Survival differed, though, between the two sites in the same breeding season: the average survival time was significantly higher at Aplin Forest (8 days compared with 3�days) and the Kaplan–Meier survival estimates decreased less sharply. Predation by cats and birds of prey exerted the greatest influence on survival, but the proportion of deaths caused by these two predators was approximately the same at both sites. The main factor affecting survival was obviously the availability of thickets, which were more abundant at Aplin Forest. The survival rates of chicks released in thickets was significantly higher than of those released in the rainforest, presumably because they were better protected from predators. For chicks living in thickets the likelihood of being killed was lower than expected, but it was higher for those remaining in rainforest. On the basis of these results, we propose that management plans for endangered megapodes should include the identification and protection of large protective thicket habitats for enhancing overall chick survival, apart from controlling introduced predators such as feral cats.


2010 ◽  
Vol 67 (9) ◽  
pp. 723-731 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivica Pejcic ◽  
Svetislav Vrbic ◽  
Sladjana Filipovic ◽  
Mirjana Scekic ◽  
Ivan Petkovic ◽  
...  

Background/Aim. Unknown primary tumors represent a heterogeneous group of malignancies that are indicative of ominous prognosis. Cancer of unknown primary site (CUP) is defined as the lack of any detectable primary site after full evaluation, and accounts for approximately 3-5% of all newly diagnosed patients with malignancies. The aim of this report was to present the prognostic and predictive value of 8 serum tumor markers in this group of patients. Methods. The study involved 63 patients. On histological examination, all the patients were presented with metastatic tumors whose primary site (origin) could not be detected with noninvasive diagnostic techniques. Following the routine light microscopy, all histological findings were classified into one of the following three groups: plano-cellular carcinoma - 8 patients; adenocarcinoma - 33 patients; unclassifiable (undifferentiated) carcinoma - 22 patients. In all the cases we evaluated 8 serum tumor markers: alpha-fetoproteins (AFP), chronic gonadotrophin beta submit, human (beta-HCG), neuron specific enolase (NSE), marker of malignant ovarian tumors (CA 125), prostate-specific antigene (PSA), marker of malignant brest tumor (CA 15-3), marker of malignant pancreas tumor and gastrointestinal tumor (Ca 19-9), carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) at the time of diagnosis. The patients on chemotherapy had the markers determined after the third and sixth chemocycle, i.e. at the time of illness progression observation, if present. The patients responding to chemotherapy with complete response (CR), partial response (PR) or stable disease (SD) had the markers determined after three-month periods until the time of relapse or progression. Chemotherapy was applied in 32 patients (20 females and 12 males), aged 29-70 years, who met the inclusion criteria. The following chemotherapy regimen was used: doxorubicin 50mg/m2 (day 1), cisplatin 60mg/m2 (day 1), and etoposide 120 mg/m2 (days 1-3). The period between two chemotherapy cycles was three weeks, and maximum five weeks in the case of prolonged hematological toxicity. Results. Most commonly elevated were NSE values (82.54%), while AFP values were least commonly elevated (11.11%). Average survival time was 17.89 months (95%CI 12.96; 22.83). The probability of 24 months' survival was 0.228. The group of 32 patients treated with chemotherapy had 12 (37.5%) fatal outcomes in the observed period (72 months). Average survival time was 26.6 months (95% CI 19.5; 33.7). Average tumor marker values before and after the chemotherapy were significantly lower for NSE and CA 125. Survival was significantly better in cases of NSE and CA 125 decrease of more than 20%. Conclusion. Increased values of serum tumor markers are very often in CUP. The tumors show nonspecific overexpression of tumor markers. The NSE and CA 125 levels show good correlation with response to the given chemotherapy. However, a routine evaluation of commonly used serum tumor markers has not been proven of any prognostic and predictive assistance.


1956 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. F. Carruthers ◽  
C. W. Gowdey

Anesthetized rats were subjected to a standardized hemorrhagic shock procedure; one group (20 animals) served as controls and another group (eight animals) was injected with chlorpromazine. The treated animals died very quickly: only one survived more than 12 hr. and none 48 hr.; the average survival time of 18 control fatalities was 14.0 hr., and two lived. Of the various cardiovascular and respiratory indices measured, only the post-reinfusion arterial pressure was different in the treated from that in the control group. Differences between the control groups in this and in an earlier series (Downie and Stevenson (1955)) can probably be accounted for by differences in the temperature of the laboratory.


1932 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valy Menkin

Repeated intravenous injections of ferric chloride are followed by an increase in the survival time of tuberculous rabbits. In the particular series of experiments reported this increase amounts to about 78 per cent over the average survival time of control rabbits. Tuberculous animals repeatedly injected with ferric chloride increase in weight during part of the period of these injections. The level reached in the series studied markedly exceeds that attained by control rabbits. Both control and experimental animals die of generalized tuberculosis. There is no indication at the time of death of any differences in the degree of pathological involvement between the two groups of animals.


2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 153303382096560
Author(s):  
Samireh Badrigilan ◽  
Jalal Choupani

Dear Editor, I am writing to you in order to highlight some miscalculations in an article published in the journal of Technology in Cancer Research & Treatment, entitled; “SRS in Combination with Ipilimumab: A Promising New Dimension for Treating Melanoma Brain Metastases” by Khan, et al.1 These miscalculations changed the derived conclusion about median survival time, and adverse effects in the selected treatment groups. So, amending these miscalculations may help readers in future research decisions.


1955 ◽  
Vol 144 (916) ◽  
pp. 314-328 ◽  

The average survival time after bilateral adrenalectomy of rats of the N. I. M. R. hooded strain, maintained on a low salt diet and not having visible accessory tissue, was about 6 days. This survival time was usually too short to permit the establishment of an effective graft, but by feeding NaCl it could be prolonged sufficiently to enable fresh cortical tissue to form grafts which were functional in that the animals survived subsequent transference to low salt diet for 2 weeks. Exposure of the cortical tissue to low temperatures by the methods previously employed for ovarian tissue (Parkes & Smith 1953) greatly decreased the probability that it would form an effective graft, but a number of successful experiments were carried out, especially when a buffered Ringer-Locke medium containing glycerol was substituted for the glycerol-saline previously used. In all, more than a hundred functional grafts were obtained from adreno­cortical tissue which had been exposed to a temperature of — 79°C for up to 24 h. Adrenocortical cells, therefore, like many others, are not necessarily destroyed by ex­posure to low temperatures ( — 79°C), though it seems that optimal conditions are not provided by the technique evolved for gonadal endocrine cells.


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