1/5. Acute myeloblastic leukemia following treatment for non-hematopoietic cancers: report of 19 cases and review of the literature.Nineteen patients are reported who developed acute myeloblastic leukemia following treatment for a variety of solid tumors, including seminoma (four cases), melanoma (one case), and cancer of the ovary (six cases), colon or rectum (three cases), bladder (two cases), cervix, endometrium, and larynx (one case each). There were nine men and ten women, with a median age of 49.8 years (range 29 to 75). The mean interval between the diagnosis of solid tumors and acute leukemia is 5.8 years. In two patients the two diseases occurred simultaneously or within six months of each other. One patient was treated only surgically. Eight patients were treated with radiotherapy, five with chemotherapy, and five received both chemotherapy and radiotherapy. pancytopenia was commonly noted prior to the onset of leukemia with chromosomal abnormalities observed in four cases in which a karyotype was performed. Three patients achieved complete hematological remission following antileukemic therapy. One hundred and six additional patients with non-hematopoietic neoplasms and acute leukemia are reviewed. Although acute leukemia may occur in a higher than expected frequency in patients with solid tumors because of a possible increased risk of a second neoplasm, it seems more likely that the acute leukemia is related to the radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy administered to treat the first neoplasm.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = leukemia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/5. brachial plexus neuropathy following high-dose cytarabine in acute monoblastic leukemia.We describe brachial plexus neuropathy with high-dose cytarabine (Ara-C) therapy in a man who had acute monoblastic leukemia. signs and symptoms of brachial plexus neuropathy appeared on two occasions within hours of exposure to high-dose Ara-C. central nervous system complications have been described following systemic and intrathecal Ara-C. High-dose Ara-C has not been implicated previously as a cause of brachial plexus neuropathy.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = leukemia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/5. Hyperbaric oxygen in the treatment of radiation-induced optic neuropathy.Four patients with radiation-induced optic neuropathies were treated with hyperbaric oxygen. They had received radiation therapy for treatment of pituitary tumors, reticulum cell sarcoma, and meningioma. Two presented with amaurosis fugax before the onset of unilateral visual loss and began hyperbaria within 72 hours after development of unilateral optic neuropathy. Both had return of visual function to baseline levels. The others initiated treatment two to six weeks after visual loss occurred in the second eye and had no significant improvement of vision. Treatment consisted of daily administration of 100% oxygen under 2.8 atmospheres of pressure for 14-28 days. There were no medical complications of hyperbaria. While hyperbaric oxygen is effective in the treatment of radiation-induced optic neuropathy, it must be instituted within several days of deterioration in vision for restoration of baseline function.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 26.398826309678keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/5. central nervous system involvement as a presenting feature of acute monocytic leukemia: preceding leukemia by 12 months.This report describes a patient who presented with a diffuse malignant central nervous system (CNS) process composed of cells with monocytic differentiation one year before the development of acute monocytic leukemia. A similar presentation has been documented for acute lymphocytic leukemia, but to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to detail a diffuse CNS malignancy as the presenting symptom for acute monocytic leukemia.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.1keywords = leukemia (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/5. radiation-induced malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the brachial plexus.Brachial plexopathy is a common and disabling complication in cancer patients most often attributed to metastasis or radiation-induced fibrosis. Occasionally, other rare but potentially treatable causes are found. A 73 year old woman had a left radical mastectomy followed by radiation to the chest wall and axilla 24 years ago. She recently presented with left arm pain, chronic, nonprogressive lymphedema, profound distal arm sensory loss and progressive severe hand weakness. There was moderate atrophy of all intrinsic hand muscles, anesthesia of the hypothenar eminence and 4th and 5th digits, and no adenopathy or palpable mass in the axilla. EMG confirmed a brachial plexopathy. MRI showed loss of tissue planes consistent with radiation fibrosis, but CT showed a discrete mass in the brachial plexus. Open biopsy showed pleomorphic spindle shaped cells with immunoperoxidase stains consistent with malignant fibrous histiocytoma. radiation-induced malignant fibrous histiocytoma may present with a brachial plexopathy in the absence of a palpable mass and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of brachial plexus lesions in cancer patients. CT scanning through the plexus may be useful when MRI is normal or equivocal.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 4.3998043849464keywords = radiation-induced (Clic here for more details about this article) |