And here's another mention from AP:
News Alert from AP Online via Quote.com
Headline: Thalidomide May Aid Cancer Patients
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By BRIGITTE GREENBERG
Associated Press Writer
Thalidomide, the drug infamous for causing ghastly birth defects
during the 1960s, appears to be effective against a highly lethal
form of bone cancer, even in patients in advanced stages of the
disease.
A study of 84 patients with multiple myeloma found that all
signs of the disease disappeared in 10 percent of those getting
thalidomide, and most of the others improved somewhat.
''These were tough patients for whom there is no standard
treatment approach available,'' said study co-author Dr. Bart
Barlogie of the University of Arkansas Cancer Research Center.
''Thalidomide is the first new drug that has shown activity in
multiple myeloma in the past 30-plus years.''
While never approved in the United States, thalidomide was given
to pregnant women in other countries for morning sickness. It was
banned worldwide after causing 12,000 babies to be born with
serious birth defects, including flipper-like arms. The drug became
available in the United States for the first time last year as a
treatment for leprosy.
Thalidomide is undergoing several studies as a possible cancer
medicine. The new study, published in Thursday's New England
Journal of Medicine, offers some of the strongest evidence yet of
its effectiveness.
Barlogie said researchers are not sure precisely what makes
thalidomide work, but it apparently cuts off the blood supply to
tumors.
Multiple myeloma, a bone marrow cancer that kills about 11,000
people in the United States each year, is considered incurable with
conventional chemotherapy. The disease usually strikes the elderly,
and with traditional treatment, they generally survive 2 1/2 to 3
years. When combined with a bone marrow transplant, chemotherapy
can prolong life somewhat.
The new study showed that almost one-third of the patients
studied had a positive response to thalidomide, and 10 percent
experienced a complete or near-complete remission.
A positive response was defined as a reduction in the number of
abnormal protein cells in the blood or urine. While complete
remission means no evidence of the cancer remains, it does not
necessarily mean patients are cured.
Before the study, 76 of participants had suffered a relapse
after chemotherapy, and all were in later stages of the disease.
The patients received oral doses of thalidomide for 80 days.
They started with 200 milligrams, and the dosage was progressively
increased to 800 milligrams per day.
Thirty-two percent of the patients responded to the treatment,
with decreases in abnormal protein cells ranging from 25 percent to
90 percent in some people. After a year, 48 patients were still
alive.
At least one-third of the patients suffered side effects such as
constipation, weakness, fatigue, drowsiness and neurological
complications. However, in most cases, a reduction in the dosage
eased the problems.
Celgene Corp., the only company that sells thalidomide in the
United States, hopes to gain federal approval to use it for cancer
treatment.
Dr. Michael Gruber, director of neuro-oncology at New York
University Medical Center, said the study adds to a growing body of
evidence supporting use of the drug for some specific purposes.
''I think it's extremely exciting. These were essentially
terminal patients who had reached the end of all other forms of
treatment,'' he said.
The drug's proponents say it has shown promise in experimental
treatments for other forms of cancer, wasting disease and ulcers in
AIDS patients, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, tuberculosis and other
diseases.
In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Noopur Raje and Kenneth
Anderson of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, said
thalidomide opens ''possibilities for novel treatments.''
''Given that the patients in the study had relapsed after
chemotherapy, which was usually given in massive doses, this effect
of thalidomide is indeed remarkable,'' they wrote.
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