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1. Famotidine, a new histamine H2‐receptor antagonist was administered intravenously (20 mg) to 22 patients with end stage renal disease during a dialysis free interval (n = 6) and during different blood purification processes including haemodialysis (HD; n = 4), intermittent haemofiltration (HF; n = 4), continuous haemofiltration (CHF; n = 4) and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD; n = 4). The plasma, the dialysate/filtrate and the urine concentrations of famotidine were analysed by h.p.l.c. 2. In addition, intra‐gastric pH was measured by a long‐term‐pH probe in seven patients with renal failure and in six patients with normal renal function (control group) following 20 mg famotidine. 3. A 7 to 10 fold prolongation of famotidine's elimination half‐life (27.2 +/‐ 8.5 h; mean +/‐ s.d.) was observed in patients with renal failure as compared with the half‐life (2.6‐3.6 h) in subjects with normal renal function. 4. Total body clearance (CL) and volume of distribution (V) were found to be 33.5 +/‐ 10.1 ml min‐1 and 1.3 +/‐ 0.7 l kg‐1, respectively in patients with end‐ stage renal failure. 5. Blood purification processes have shown considerable variation in clearing famotidine from the body: 16.4 +/‐ 8.9 and 6.0 +/‐ 2.9% of the administered dose in HD with polysulphone and cuprophan membranes respectively, 7.7 +/‐ 5.2% in HF with a polyacrylonitrile membrane (each for 5 h), 4.5 +/‐ 1.1% in CAPD and 16.2 +/‐ 4.9% in CHF with a polysulphone membrane within 24 h.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Radioimmunoimaging of bone marrow was performed for non-invasive detection of skeletal involvement in 15 patients with carcinoma of the breast and 17 patients with malignant lymphomas. Bone marrow scans were performed by means of a monoclonal 99mTc-labelled antibody, directed against NCA-95 and CEA. The presence and extent of skeletal involvement were controlled by skeletal scintigraphy, plain radiographs and CT; bone marrow biopsies were obtained in 19 patients as well. 20 subjects without suspected malignant disease served as controls. Haematopoietic bone marrow was imaged homogeneously and with high contrast in all controls. 15/15 patients with carcinoma of the breast and 10/17 patients with malignant lymphomas had multifocal bone marrow defects due to skeletal metastases. Bone marrow scans revealed significantly more lesions than skeletal scintigraphy both in carcinoma of the breast (p = 0.027) and malignant lymphomas (p = 0.015). Thus, radioimmunoscintigraphy of bone marrow may provide a new, sensitive approach for non-invasive detection of metastatic spread to the skeletal system.

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