The use of thalidomide in the management of bleeding from a gastric cancer.
Medical management of severe gastrointestinal bleeding can present a therapeutic challenge. We describe a case of bleeding secondary to gastric cancer that failed to settle, despite treatment with tranexamic acid, etamsylate and sucralfate. Thalidomide was prescribed for its antiangiogenic properties. Bleeding settled within 1 week of starting 300 mg of thalidomide nocte. The effect appeared to be dose dependent, with bleeding recurring only when the dose was reduced to 100 mg of thalidomide nocte.
Lambert
K
K
Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, Dewsbury and District Hospital, Dewsbury, UK. lambertkatherine@hotmail.com
Ward
J
J
D000368:Aged; D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005260:Female; D006471:Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D013792:Thalidomide / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D020533:Angiogenesis Inhibitors; D013792:Thalidomide