[High dose chemotherapy of solid tumors].
BACKGROUND
The availability of hemopoetic growth factors and the retransfusion of autologous peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) have enabled high-dose chemotherapy (HDT) options for the treatment of advanced solid tumours, during recent years. Though the transfusion of PBSC can manage the myelosuppression, dose-escalation ist still limited by non-haematological toxicity.


METHODS
Usually, HDT has been given after a proceeding dose-intense chemotherapy that allowed the evaluation of chemosensitivity of the disease and resulted in a stem cell mobilization into the peripheral blood. The autologous bone marrow transplantation has almost completely been replaced by retransfusion of PBSC together with hemopoietic growth factors as specific supportive treatment. The PBSC are harvested by apheresis using a blood cell separator.


RESULTS
Results on the efficacy of HDT are available for breast, testicular, ovarian, small cell lung cancer as well as melanoma, glioblastoma and soft-tissue sarcoma. The studies showed the feasibility and efficacy of HDT with tolerable toxicity.


CONCLUSIONS
High-dose chemotherapy will be of increasing importance in the treatment strategies of primary solid tumors, in the near future.
Höffken
K
K
Klinik und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin II (Onkologie, Hämatologie, Endokrinologie, Stoffwechselerkrankungen). Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena.
Kath
R
R
Fricke
H J
HJ
Blumenstengel
K
K
Vogel
W
W
Sayer
H G
HG
D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006410:Hematopoiesis / Q000187:drug effects; D016298:Hematopoietic Cell Growth Factors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy*
D016298:Hematopoietic Cell Growth Factors