homoharringtonine and Breast-Neoplasms

Two combination chemotherapy protocols, CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, fluorouracil) and CMFH (CMF plus homoharringtonine), were tested in advanced breast cancer patients. The response rate of CMF was 50% in 44 cases, and that of CMFH was 54.16% in 48 cases; the difference was not significant. There was also no difference between the median duration of response and the median survival of the two protocols. It was concluded that the addition of homoharringtonine to the CMF protocol gave no additional benefit.

Topics: Adult; Aged; Alkaloids; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols; Breast Neoplasms; Clinical Trials as Topic; Cyclophosphamide; Female; Fluorouracil; Harringtonines; Homoharringtonine; Humans; Methotrexate; Middle Aged

Topics: Alkaloids; Antineoplastic Agents; Australia; Breast Neoplasms; Clinical Trials as Topic; Ethics, Medical; Female; Harringtonines; Homoharringtonine; Humans; Legislation, Drug

Homoharringtonine (HHT), a natural alkaloid derived from the

Topics: Apoptosis; Breast Neoplasms; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Homoharringtonine; Humans; MCF-7 Cells; MicroRNAs; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; Signal Transduction; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases

Primary granulocytic sarcoma of the breast is a rare and poor-prognosis malignancy. Clinicians do not have sufficient knowledge of this disease and often misdirect it as other soft tissue sarcomas or inflammation.. A 42-year-old female presented with a self-discovered asymptomatic growing and palpable right breast mass that had been present for 4 months.. The patient was diagnosed as primary myeloid sarcoma.. The patient received modified radical mastectomy in the right breast and sentinel lymph node biopsy. Pathological diagnosis is primary granulocytic sarcoma. Then the patient accepted acute myeloid leukemia-induction chemotherapy.. The follow-up of this patient has no evidence of disease progression or spread during 1 year.. Granulocytic sarcoma in the breast tissue is rare. But it still should be considered in the differential diagnosis of any tumor in the breast. The present study discusses comprehensively the clinical and pathological characteristics to improve the understanding of myeloid sarcoma.

Topics: Adult; Breast Neoplasms; Cytarabine; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Homoharringtonine; Humans; Induction Chemotherapy; Mastectomy, Modified Radical; Sarcoma, Myeloid; Sentinel Lymph Node Biopsy; Treatment Outcome

Five phase II trials of the antitumor agent homoharringtonine were conducted in 80 patients who had advanced solid tumors. The five categories of solid tumors included malignant melanoma; sarcoma; and head and neck, breast, and colorectal carcinomas. The starting dose of homoharringtonine was 3.0-4.0 mg/m2 by short iv infusion daily X 5 days every 21 days. Seventy-eight of 80 patients had had prior chemotherapy and 49 had had prior radiation therapy. Among the 74 evaluable patients in the five tumor categories, there were no complete or partial remissions. Homoharringtonine was generally well-tolerated. Nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and fever and chills were the most common side effects. Serious reversible cardiovascular toxicity, which occurred in three patients, included symptomatic hypotension in two and short runs of ventricular tachycardia in one. The investigations thus conclude that homoharringtonine given by intermittent schedule is an inactive drug against these solid tumors previously exposed to chemotherapy.

Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Alkaloids; Bone Marrow; Breast Neoplasms; Carcinoma; Colonic Neoplasms; Drug Evaluation; Female; Harringtonines; Head and Neck Neoplasms; Heart; Homoharringtonine; Humans; Hypotension; Male; Melanoma; Middle Aged; Rectal Neoplasms; Sarcoma