[en] The continuous long-term systemic administration of steroid hormones to rats was attempted by the capsules. Glass capsules containing sex hormone were made by low-temperature radiation-induced polymerization. Testosterone was eluted at a constant speed up to the 120th day in vitro, and could be administered up to the 56th day in vivo. The amount of testosterone released in vitro up to the 120th day was only 10% of the content. (Chiba, N.)

[en] We attempted to identify factors that predict the outcomes of salvage external beam radiotherapy (sEBRT) in patients who showed local recurrence without systemic progression or isolated prostate specific antigen (PSA) recurrence after initial hormonal therapy. The subjects were 33 patients who were diagnosed as having local recurrence without systemic progression (30 cases) or isolated PSA recurrence (three cases). Of these patients, those with continuously decreasing PSA levels, which were 1.0 ng/ml or less 1-1.5 years after sEBRT, were regarded as good responders (GR) whereas the remaining patients were regarded as poor responders (nGR). Survival rates in these patients and factors that distinguish GR from nGR were evaluated retrospectively. The cancer-specific 10-year survival rate was 82.4% in the 33 patients, 100% in the 21 GR patients and 55% in the 12 nGR patients (P<0.0001). Stepwise variable selection to discriminate between GR and nGR revealed that the time from sEBRT initiation to the nadir PSA was the most significant factor (P=0.000097). Before sEBRT, GR can be predicted in patients with pre-sEBRT PSA <30.0 ng/ml and PSA doubling time (PSADT) >7.0 months, with a sensitivity of 95.2% (20/21), a specificity of 100% and an accuracy of 97.0%. Good responses to sEBRT can be expected in patients with local recurrence without systemic progression or isolated PSA recurrence after initial hormonal therapy when the patients show both pre-sEBRT PSA <30.0 ng/ml and PSADT >7.0 months. (author)

[en] Thirty patients with adenocarcinoma of the prostate were treated with radiotherapy in Gunma University Hospital during a period of 1971--1976. One of the patients was classified as stage A, 6 as stage B, 14 as stage C and 9 as stage D. Age of the patients ranged from 55 to 78 years with average of 69.7 years. Irradiation was performed with Linac 10 MV Xray in 4 directions-at 45⁰ divergence on the right and left of median line of cancer and in their opposite directions. Fraction dose was 3 Gy, which was administered three times a week, i. e., each other day, the total dose attaining 69 Gy (TDF 130). Twenty-eight patients concurrently received hormone therapy or chemotherapy. Local control was satisfactory. No obvious local recurrence was recognized and 86% of the patients could urinate naturally. Four patients, in whom the urinary tract was altered, all showed advanced urinary retention. The relative 5 years survival rate was 52% for 30 patients and 60% in stage C. Long-term survival could be expected if local control was possible. Chronic side effect of radiotherapy was recognized only in two patients, who showed rectal hemorrhage, which was, however, controlled by conservative treatment. (author)

[en] The radiation polymerized testosterone-vinyl ester copolymer delivery composites containing poly(ethylene glycol)(Msub(n)=1900-2100) as a transportable promoter were implanted subcutaneously in castrated Wistar rats over a period of at most 90 days. The in vivo cumulative amounts of testosterone released from the above composite on the 7th, 30th, and 90th day from implantation were 498, 2120, and 6913μg, respectively. These values were about 3.2 times larger than those released in vivo from the composites containing no poly(ethylene glycol). The comparison of in vitro and in vivo cumulative amounts of testosterone released from polyethylene glycol-containing composites showed that the in vivo cumulative amount of released drug was about 2 times larger than that in vitro. It was concluded from these results that poly(ethylene glycol) effectively acted as a drug-transportable promoter when the composite was implanted subcutaneously in rats. This is also suggested from the results of serum testosterone concentration and physiological response (as a measure of changes in weight of the ventral prostates) in castrated rats with drug delivery composites. (author)

[en] The aims of this study were to assess the effectiveness of CT during arteriography (CTA) in superselective transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) for invasive bladder cancer, and to report preliminary results of superselective TACE. Angiography was performed in 20 patients with invasive bladder cancer, using a combined CT-Angiography system. Of the 20 tumors, 19 were T3, one was T2. The vesical arteries were selected using a 3F microcatheter, and perfusion was confirmed using CTA. TACE was performed after administrating 40 to 100 mg of cisplatin, with and without gelatin sponge particles. The effects of TACE were assessed by surgery or a combination of cystoscopy and CT in 15 cases. The vesical arteries were successfully selected in 18 of 20 patients. In 16 small tumors, the tumor stain was clearly depicted on CTA. In two large tumors, the vascular supply was identified as involving multiple arteries. One case showed complete remission, six showed partial remission, and eight showed no change. Complications included mild local pain around the perineum during TACE, and transient nausea in some patients. CTA may be useful in superselective TACE for invasive bladder cancer, and may contribute to effective treatment of bladder tumors. (author)

[en] The rigid γ-globulin matrix (50 mg) as a carrier for drug delivery system was made by γ-ray irradiation after melt-pressing at 75⁰C under a pressure of 100 kg/cm². The in vivo degradation (weight loss) of the matrix when implanted subcutaneously in the back of wistar rats was about 1.9% at 90th day from implantation. When 0.1 M Tartarate buffer solution (pH 1.8) containing 0, 0.005, 0.01 and 0.1 w/v% pepsin was used as a digestive medium (37⁰C), the in vitro degradation (weight loss) of the matrix was 1.2, 31.4, 45.7 and 53.9% at 90th day from start of the test, respectively. Therefore, it was concluded that the in vivo degradation of the matrix was much slower than that in vitro. On the basis of these results, testosterone (15 mg) as a drug was entrapped in γ-globulin matrix irradiated after melt-pressing. The in vivo degradation of matrix itself was significantly accelerated in the presence of drug, and reached up to 57.4% at 90th day from implantation. The in vivo release of drug from the composites was investigated using castrated Wistar rats. Furthermore, the study of the relationship between the in vivo release of drug and the physiological response (change in weight of the ventral prostate) indicated that the efficacious drug release continued up to 60 days. (author)

[en] Published in summary form only

[en] Some random DL-alanine-containing copolymers, such as DL-alanine [Ala] and β-ethyl-L-aspartate [Asp(OEt)] and DL-alanine [Ala] and γ-ethyl-L-glutamate [Glu(OEt)] were prepared according to N-carboxy α-amino acid anhydride (NCA) methods. They were then melted by heating under a pressure of 150 kg/cm² to obtain the columnar matrices (1.6 mm in diameter) which have high density and rigidity. The 100 % in vivo degradation of melt-pressed copolymer matrices were observed in compositions more than 50 mol% Ala for [AlaAsp(OEt)]sub(n) and 75 mol% Ala for [AlaGlu(OEt)]sub(n). After a melt-pressed [AlaAsp(OEt)]sub(n) (50 mol% Ala) was irradiated for 3 h at a dose rate of 1 x 10⁶ rad/h at temperatures of -196, -78, 0, 30, and 60 ⁰C, in vacuo with γ-rays from a ⁶⁰Co source, the in vivo degradations when they were implanted subcutaneously in the back of rats during the first 3 weeks period were 33.6 %, 29.5, 18.9, 52.5, and 22.4 %, respectively. Thus the in vivo degradation of the above matrix has the maximum value at around 30 ⁰C. Such a tendency was observed also in a [AlaGlu(OEt)]sub(n) matrix. The viscosity (etasub(sp)/c) of a melt-pressed [AlaAsp(OEt)]sub(n) (50 mol% Ala) irradiated at a temperature of 0 ⁰C rapidly decreased with an increase in the irradiation dose (1 x 10⁵ rad to 1 x 10⁷ rad: 0.50 dl/g to 0.13 dl/g), though it gradually decreased at 30 ⁰C (1 x 10⁵ rad to 1 x 10⁷ rad: 0.53 dl/g to 0.33 dl/g). In this case, the in vivo degradation of melt-pressed matrix irradiated at 0 ⁰C decreased with an increase in the irradiation dose. The data of amino acid analysis showed that the digestion of Ala moiety in a [AlaAsp(OEt)]sub(n) (50 mol% Ala) irradiated at 30 ⁰C is slightly faster than that at 0 ⁰C. (J.P.N.)

[en] The aim of this study is to estimate the feasibility of quality of life (QOL) research and to evaluate the QOL prospectively in locally advanced prostate cancer patients treated with hormonal treatment combined with radiotherapy. The treatment schedule was that patients with decreasing prostatic specific antigen (PSA) levels below 10 ng/ml after receiving 6 months of neoadjuvant hormonal treatment were randomly divided into two groups; one group was the continuous hormonal treatment group and the other was the intermittent hormonal treatment group. Both groups received a total dose of 72 Gy external beam radiotherapy with concomitant hormonal treatment followed by 6 months of adjuvant hormonal treatment following radiotherapy. At 14 months, patients either underwent continuous or intermittent hormonal treatment according to the random allocation. QOL was assessed at baseline, and at 6, 8, 14, and 20 months after treatment using functional assessment of cancer treatment-general (FACT-G), P with the other 3 items comprising bother of urination, bother of bowel movement, and bother of sexual activity. Between January 2000 and June 2003, a total of 188 patients were enrolled in this study. The rate of collection of baseline QOL sheets was 98.0%. The rate of answer to questions of QOL sheets was 99.0%. At baseline, the average score of FACT-G, P was 120.7 and the maximum score was more than twice the minimum score. Dysfunction of urination and bowel movement was correlated with the bother of urination and bowel movement, respectively. On the other hand, dysfunction of sexual activity was not correlated with the bother of sexual activity. In June 2003, all of the QOL sheets at baseline, and at 6, 8, and 14 months were completely collected from a total of 72 patients. Although QOL at 8 months was significantly affected compared with QOL at baseline and at 6 months, QOL at 14 months was significantly improved compared with that at 8 months and there was no significant difference between the QOL at baseline and that at 14 months after treatment. These data suggest that the present QOL study had sufficient feasibility in locally advanced prostate cancer patients treated with hormonal treatment combined with radiotherapy and that individual differences of QOL score were observed even before treatment. (author)

[en] Purpose: To assess, in a nationwide multi-institutional cohort study begun in 2005 and in which 6927 subjects were enrolled by 2010, the urinary and rectal toxicity profiles of subjects who enrolled during the first 2 years, and evaluate the toxicity profiles for permanent seed implantation (PI) and a combination therapy with PI and external beam radiation therapy (EBRT). Methods and Materials: Baseline data for 2339 subjects out of 2354 patients were available for the analyses. Toxicities were evaluated using the National Cancer Institute's Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events, and the International Prostate Symptom Scores were recorded prospectively until 36 months after radiation therapy. Results: Grade 2+ acute urinary toxicities developed in 7.36% (172 of 2337) and grade 2+ acute rectal toxicities developed in 1.03% (24 of 2336) of the patients. Grade 2+ late urinary and rectal toxicities developed in 5.75% (133 of 2312) and 1.86% (43 of 2312) of the patients, respectively. A higher incidence of grade 2+ acute urinary toxicity occurred in the PI group than in the EBRT group (8.49% vs 3.66%; P<.01). Acute rectal toxicity outcomes were similar between the treatment groups. The 3-year cumulative incidence rates for grade 2+ late urinary toxicities were 6.04% versus 4.82% for the PI and the EBRT groups, respectively, with no significant differences between the treatment groups. The 3-year cumulative incidence rates for grade 2+ late rectal toxicities were 0.90% versus 5.01% (P<.01) for the PI and the EBRT groups, respectively. The mean of the postimplant International Prostate Symptom Score peaked at 3 months, but it decreased to a range that was within 2 points of the baseline score, which was observed in 1625 subjects (69.47%) at the 1-year follow-up assessment. Conclusions: The acute urinary toxicities observed were acceptable given the frequency and retention, and the late rectal toxicities were more favorable than those of other studies