Study design: Case controlled study. Objective: To compare nutritional status and immune response in a group of spinal cord injured (SCI) patients with age and gender matched non SCI control subjects. Method: Thirty past patients of the Burwood Hospital Spinal Injuries Unit living locally were enrolled in the study. Age and gender matched non SCI control subjects were selected volunteers from hospital sta . Nutritional status was assessed by generating a Nutritional Risk Score (NRS, Appendix 1) and drawing blood for full blood count, iron studies, red blood cell folate, vitamin B12, ferritin, magnesium, and zinc. Immune status was assessed by vaccination response index (VRI) to Pneumovax 23 vaccine. Results: Full blood count, iron studies, and testing for red blood cell folate, albumin, prealbumin, vitamin B12, ferritin, magnesium and zinc were normal range for both groups. The SCI group had signi®cantly di erent median values than controls (P50.01) for haemoglobin concentration, white blood cell count, albumin, prealbumin, serum iron and % saturation. Body Mass Index (weight kg/(height cm 2 ) was 22.2 (range 15 ± 30) for the SCI group, signi®cantly less than the paired control group index of 26 (range 20 ± 32, P=0.0004). Median NRS for SCI patients was 2 (range 0 ± 6), compared to 0 (range 2 ± 4) for paired controls (P50.0001). Scores ranged from 0 to 2 for each of the ®ve NRS components for the SCI patients and 0 to 3 for the control group. There was no signi®cant di erence in the preand post-vaccination ratio for IgG, IgA, and IgM response to Pneumovax 23 vaccine. Conclusion: We have not identi®ed any nutritional or immune status abnormality in SCI patients, however the SCI patients have a lower value for certain nutritional parameters and BMI. SCI patients however are at only slight risk of nutritional problems given their NRS and their lower normal values for certain nutritional factors.
Lomeguatrib, an O 6 -methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase inactivator, was evaluated in an extended dosing regimen with temozolomide, designed according to pharmacodynamic data from previous studies. Patients with unresectable stage 3 or 4 cutaneous or unknown primary melanoma metastases were treated with lomeguatrib 40 mg, b.i.d. for 10 or 14 days and temozolomide 75 -100 mg m À2 on days 1 -5. Drugs were administered orally with cycles repeated every 28 days, for up to six cycles. A total of 32 patients were recruited to the study. Lomeguatrib for 10 days with temozolomide 75 mg m À2 was established as the optimal extended lomeguatrib dosing schedule, with haematological toxicity being dose limiting. There were two partial responses to treatment giving an overall response rate of 6.25%. Extending lomeguatrib administration beyond that of temozolomide requires a reduced dose of the latter agent. Only limited clinical activity was seen, suggesting no advantage for this regimen over conventional temozolomide administration in the treatment of melanoma.
This study defined a tolerable dose of irinotecan in combination with lomeguatrib in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Combination treatment gave a similar response rate to irinotecan monotherapy in this heavily pre-treated patient group.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.