Chemotherapy for AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma.
Clinical staging and response criteria for AIDS-associated Kaposi's sarcoma (AIDS-KS) are not well-developed, but classifying patients into limited or extensive disease categories allows a clinician to select appropriate local or systemic therapy. A prospective staging system has been proposed to uniformly evaluate pretreatment patient characteristics and subsequent clinical responses. Combination chemotherapy is effective, but its use is often limited by toxicities. Antiretroviral medications, if clinically tolerated, should be continued during combination chemotherapy. Future therapies will evaluate the utility of ddI or ddC with combination chemotherapy. A second area of research involves combination therapy using chemotherapy and antiretroviral agents along with growth factors to limit myelotoxicity.
Kahn
J
J
Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Northfelt
D
D
Volberding
P
P
D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006801:Humans; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012307:Risk Factors; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology
D000998:Antiviral Agents