title: Treatment of hypercalcemia of malignancy with intravenous etidronate. A controlled, multicenter study. The Hypercalcemia Study Group.
abstract: In a prospective, randomized, double-blind, multicenter study, 202 patients with cancer from 19 medical centers were treated for hypercalcemia of malignancy with daily intravenous infusions of etidronate disodium (136 patients) or saline alone (66 patients) for 3 consecutive days. Patients also received up to 3.25 L of saline daily during the treatment period. Of 157 patients for whom data could be evaluated for efficacy, 63% (72/114) of etidronate-treated and 33% (14/43) of saline-treated patients had a normalization of total serum calcium levels. When serum calcium levels were adjusted for albumin (147 assessable patients), 24% of the etidronate- and 7% of the saline-treated patients responded to treatment. No serious side effects or treatment-related deaths occurred. When accompanied by adequate hydration and diuresis, intravenous etidronate was safe and more effective than hydration and diuresis alone in controlling hypercalcemia of malignancy.
authors.affiliation: Los Angeles County University of Southern California Medical Center.
authors.forename: F R
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Singer
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Ritch
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Lad
authors.forename: Q S
authors.initials: QS
authors.lastname: Ringenberg
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Schiller
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Recker
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ryzen
mesh_terms: D004311:Double-Blind Method; D012968:Etidronic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D005440:Fluid Therapy; D006801:Humans; D006934:Hypercalcemia / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D012968:Etidronic Acid