100 Pharmacological Research, Vol. 26, Supplement 1, 1992

INTERFERON ALFA IN THE LUNG CANCER

G. Crispano, G. De Simone & C. Marzo Istituto di Tisiologia e Malattie Respiratorie dell’hiversith degli Studi di Napoli Federico II (Dir. Prof. E. Catena)

In the period between January 1986 and December 1989 we studied 60 patients with primitive lung cancer, subdivided in 3 groups according to the therapy: 20 were treated with surgery, 20 with radiotherapy, 20 with chemotherapy. We have been studying a second group since September 1989; this is composed of 30 patients, subdivided in 3 groups as above. Alfa-2b recombinant Interferon at the dose of 3.000.000 i.u. i.m. three times a week for three months was associated to all 3 groups. The treatment was repeated again after three months. We demonstrated that the combination of alfa-2b recombinant therapy and the surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy in patients with primitive lung cancer, can improve the quality but not prolong life.

ALPHA 2b INTERFERON AS MAINTENANCE THERAPY AFTER CHEMOTHERAPY IN LOW GRADE NON HODGKIN LYMPHOMAS. Battista C., Iodice G., Panza N., Bevilacqua N., Chiurazzi B., Esposito G., Ronga S., Cocorocchio E., Pacilio G. Division of Oncology Carclarelli Hospital - Naples Italy.

Complete remissions after chemotherapies are uncommon and clinical recurrences are frequent in patients affected by low grade non Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). In this study 24 patients who had advanced indolence NHL were treated with 6 cycles of a chemotherapy including Cyclophosphamide, Doxorubicin, Vincristine, Prednisone (CHOP): 10 out 24 had complete remission after therapy in all the 24 subjects a maintenance therapy using alpha 2b Interferon (IFN) at a dosage of 2x106 units/m2 for 3 days at week was started. All the patients had fever, fatigue, muscular pains and cephalea during IFN therapy.

At the moment, all the patients have been submitted to IFN therapy at least for 6 months and some of them until to 12 months therapy. Progression was observed only in 4 patients, who had partial remission at the start of IFN treatment.