High-dose photoirradiation of esophageal cancer

Fifteen patients with locally advanced esophageal cancer were treated with phototherapy. Each patient had dysphagia and weight loss before therapy and could not be operated on because of the extent of the tumor or poor performance status. Patients received a photosensitizer (hematoporphyrin derivative) 72 hours before phototherapy and were then treated by light delivered by an argon pumped dye laser or gold metal vapor laser at powers up to 2.2 W and doses of 337 J/cm2. Fourteen patients received 24 treatments. The results were all patients achieved a tumor response. The depth of response depended on the dose and dose rate of radiation. There were four of 24 local complications (mediastinitis 3, bronchoesophageal fistula 1). These occurred in patients treated with a power of greater than 1.5 W. There were two complete pathologic remissions in patients with locally advanced cancer. In conclusion, phototherapy is an effective alternative to other forms of palliation and potentially may be an alternative to surgery in selected cases of locally advanced esophageal cancer.

Forecasting parasitic gastroenteritis in lambs

Incorporating estimated temperature data and assuming non-limiting rainfall, a simulation model was used to compare forecast and actual pasture counts of sheep nematode larvae over a 2-year period. The results indicate that the first possible date of the summer larval rise can be predicted up to 6 weeks in advance of its actual occurrence, enabling control measures to be planned and implemented. Rainfall variation had a marked effect on the degree of disparity between the predicted and actual timing of the rise, indicating the importance of this factor.

DNA ploidy patterns and cytokinetics of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Flow cytometry studies for cellular DNA analysis were performed in 115 cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, 53 of which had not received any prior chemotherapy or radiotherapy. DNA content was measured in ethanol fixed cells stained with chromomycin A3. According to the criteria of the International Working Formulation there were 43 low grade, 58 intermediate grade, and eight high grade lymphomas; six cases were in the miscellaneous group. Seventy seven (67%) had only diploid DNA content. Thirty eight (33%) showed DNA aneuploidy; 20 of these had been previously treated with chemotherapy or radiotherapy, or both. DNA aneuploidy was seen as hyperdiploidy in all cases except one, and it varied from slightly hyperdiploid to tetraploid. The incidence of aneuploidy increased significantly with increasing histological grade (p = 0.0002) and was not related to previous treatment. The low, intermediate, and high grade lymphomas had 14% (six of 43), 47% (27 of 58), and 62.5% (five of eight) cases, respectively, that showed DNA aneuploidy. The percentage of cells in S phase increased significantly with a higher histological grade (p less than 0.0001). The median S fraction in the low, intermediate, and high grade lymphomas was 1.0 (0.5 to 10)% 4 (0.4 to 35)%, and 27 (4.6-56)%, respectively. There is a significant correlation between histological grade and S fraction and the presence or absence of aneuploidy. There is heterogeneity, however, within both histological grade and a histological subtype.

Improved survival in esophageal cancer in the period 1978 to 1983

The outcome of therapy of adenocarcinomas and squamous-cell carcinomas of the esophagus is so poor that the results of new approaches to therapy, such as the addition of radiotherapy or chemotherapy, are often compared with those achieved in historical controls. To determine the validity of this approach in cancers with a poor outcome, the results of therapy were analyzed at our institution from Jan 11, 1978 to Aug 9, 1981 (77 patients) and compared with the results achieved in the period from Aug 14, 1981 to Feb 19, 1984 (77 patients). The patients were evenly matched for prognostic factors. It was found that the median survival of the first group of patients (4 months) was significantly less (P less than .01) than that of the recently treated group (10 months). This was due to the better median survival of patients treated surgically from 4 months in the early group to 29 months at present (P less than .01). There was no change in the survival of the other patients. The major improvement in the outcome of surgery was due to the reduction of the perioperative mortality rate to less than 5%. There was no detectable change in patient selection for surgery. The results indicate that even in tumors with a very poor outcome, such as esophageal cancer, large changes in results can occur without a specific change in therapy, and that historical controls may be misleading.

The application of a simulation model to control strategies in ovine gastro-intestinal parasitism

A simulation model which describes the pattern of increase in Ostertagia circumcincta infective larvae on pasture grazed by ewes and lambs, was used to test the effect of anthelmintic treatment at different times in the grazing season. Treatment generally resulted in a delay in the rise to peak larval count, and marked differences were recorded in two successive years, which were related to a combination of time of treatment and weather conditions.

Pathological rupture of the spleen in transforming non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Two patients with an initial diagnosis of a poorly differentiated lymphocytic lymphoma suffered a pathological rupture of the spleen in association with the histological transformation of the disease to a large cell lymphoma and the development of a leukaemic phase. The value of computerized tomographic scanning of the upper abdomen in confirming the diagnosis of splenic rupture is demonstrated.

Peripheral eosinophilia and respiratory symptoms in rubber injection press operators: a case-control study

To evaluate a suspected association between an outbreak of acute respiratory illness and eosinophilia and employment as a rubber worker, we performed a retrospective review of medical records of rubber workers employed from September 1983 to July 1984 in a plant housing a thermoinjection process. Twenty-five workers met the case definition of a respiratory illness requiring a physician visit. The predominant respiratory illness was acute in onset with cough, chest tightness, and dyspnea. Peripheral eosinophilia, up to 40% of white blood cells in a peripheral smear, was seen in 10 of 18 (56%) cases. Twenty-one of 25 white males with respiratory symptoms were employed in the thermoinjection process (odds ratio = 22, p less than .001). Smoking and employment in this process contributed independently to an increased risk of being a case as determined by a logistic regression analysis. Return to the plant building caused recurrence of symptoms in most cases, and these workers have been transferred or left the company. We conclude that a strong previously unrecognized association exists between employment in this neoprene rubber thermoinjection process and the development of an acute respiratory illness.

Hydatid disease: the alveolar variety in Australia. A case report with comment on the toxicity of mebendazole

The alveolar form of hydatid disease, caused by the larval stage of the cestode Echinococcus multilocularis, is virtually confined geographically to the northern hemisphere. It produces clinically malignant multivesicular infiltrating lesions most often in the liver, and is quite different from the usual cystic variety caused by E. granulosus. We present a case report of a patient with alveolar hydatid disease, whose treatment with mebendazole was brief due to side effects of alopecia and granulocytopenia; and review the features of this disease which, with increasing international migration, may be encountered more frequently in Australia.

Lumbar spine: pretest predictability of CT findings

Demographic and symptomatic data gathered from 460 patients referred for lumbosacral CT examinations were analyzed to determine if the prescan probability of normal or abnormal findings could be predicted accurately. We were unable to predict the presence of herniated disk on the basis of patient-supplied data alone. Age was the single most significant predictor of an abnormality and was sharply related to degenerative disease and spinal stenosis.

Endogenous auxin and ethylene in pellia (bryophyta)

The occurrence of endogenous indole-3-acetic acid and ethylene in bryophyte tissue was tentatively demonstrated using gas chromatography, high performance liquid chromatography, and double-standard isotope dilution techniques. Rapidly elongating stalks (or setae) of Pellia epiphylla (L.) Corda sporophytes contain approximately 2.5 to 2.9 micrograms per gram fresh weight of putative free IAA. Ethylene released by setae increases during growth from 0.027 to 0.035 nanoliter per seta per hour. Application of 5 microliters per liter ethylene inhibits auxin-stimulated elongation growth of this tissue, a result which suggests that both endogenously produced compounds act in tandem as natural growth modulators.

Arrested development of Nematodirus species in grazing lambs

Spring born lambs grazing in initially clean pasture for two successive years acquired low levels of Nematodirus species infection which showed a progressive increase in the level of arrested development, reaching 70 to 90 per cent of the total worm burden in lambs slaughtered in November. Similar levels were recorded in worm free tracer lambs allowed only one month access to contaminated pastures. Results suggested that both seasonal environmental conditions and host age may play an important role in larval inhibition for this genus and that this phenomenon was not density dependent, nor associated with host immunity.

Effects of Concomitant Development on Reproduction of Meloidogyne incognita and Rotylenchulus reniformis on Sweet Potato

The influence of various factors on reproduction of concomitant Meloidogyne incognita (Mi) and Rotylenchulus reniformis (Rr) on sweet potato were studied in the greenhouse. Reproduction of Rr was reduced by Mi at all inoculum levels and experiment durations used, while Mi reproduction was not inhibited. Both species failed to affect each other when inoculated simultaneously onto root systems developed in separate pots from different nodes of the same plant. Reproduction of each species was not significantly greater when inoculation of the second species was delayed 1-2 weeks compared to simultaneous inoculation. After shoot excision, Rr increased in the soil but Mi decreased. Fibrous root weights of plants inoculated with Rr + Mi in some tests were higher than those inoculated with Mi alone, indicating an early suppression of Mi and/or root stintulation by Rr. Drought stress delayed Rr egg hatching and movement of larvae into the soil, but had little effect on Mi reproduction.