Nifedipine, metoprolol and atenolol were administered orally to young, healthy volunteers. Each drug was given alone and nifedipine was also given with both beta-adrenoceptor blockers. Each drug was given for 3 days immediately before the study days. Plasma and urine drug concentrations were measured and the relevant pharmacokinetic parameters calculated. No pharmacokinetic interaction between nifedipine and the beta-adrenoceptor blockers was revealed.

Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and TherapeuticsVolume 8, Issue 2 p. 103-113 THERAPEUTIC PROGRESS—REVIEW VIII DO THE NEWER CYTOTOXIC DRUGS REPRESENT A SIGNIFICANT ADVANCE IN THE TREATMENT OF CANCER? S. Rolf Smith, Corresponding Author S. Rolf Smith Department of Clinical Pharmacology2 Correspondence: Dr S. Rolf Smith.Search for more papers by this authorG. Blackledge, G. Blackledge *Department of Medicine, University of Birmingham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, BirminghamSearch for more papers by this author S. Rolf Smith, Corresponding Author S. Rolf Smith Department of Clinical Pharmacology2 Correspondence: Dr S. Rolf Smith.Search for more papers by this authorG. Blackledge, G. Blackledge *Department of Medicine, University of Birmingham, Queen Elizabeth Hospital, BirminghamSearch for more papers by this author First published: April 1983 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2710.1983.tb01039.xAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL REFERENCES 1 Barker, D.J.P. & Rose, G. (1976) Epidemiology in Medical Practice. Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh . 2 Waterhouse, J.A.H. (1974) Cancer handbook of epidemiology and prognosis. Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh . 3 Palmer, B.V., Walsh, E.A., McKinna, J.A. & Greening, W.P. 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The production of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) by human breast cancer tissue has been studied in relation to the prognosis of patients with breast cancer. All of the patients were in a controlled trial of adjuvant chemotherapy for the treatment of operable breast cancer. CEA was studied in primary tumours and axillary node metastases from these patients using an immunoperoxidase (PAP) method. Sections of 290 primary carcinomas and 217 axillary metastases were examined for CEA. The CEA status of the primary tumours was of no value as a prognostic indicator nor in the selection of patients for chemotherapy. In contrast, patients could be divided into 3 groups on the basis of the CEA results in the axillary nodes. In one group, in which cases were strongly positive for CEA (24% of the total) the prognosis, as reflected by recurrence free survival, was relatively good and chemotherapy produced no further advantage. In another group in which cases were weakly positive for CEA (18% of the total) the prognosis was poor but chemotherapy produced significant improvement. In a third group, in which cases were negative for CEA (58% of the total) the prognosis was poor and was not improved by chemotherapy, at least in the short term. Thus, the CEA status of axillary metastases may be clinically useful.

ABSTRACT Vincristine sulphate has been found to be a more useful metaphase arrest agent than Colcemid. Metaphase accumulation, in isografts of a CBA mammary adenocarcinoma, was linear with time for at least 10 hr after vincristine administration and also independent of drug dose in the range 1–4 mg/kg body weight. A method for evaluating the cell production rate, in histological sections, of a cell population which forms a heterogeneous component of the tissue has been described. The percentage of each tissue component was determined using the Chalkley point count method and the mean number of metaphases in an arbitrary defined field were evaluated. Corrections for percentage composition and sectioning were applied and the cell production rate defined. This was found to be 15.8 ± 0.6 cells per 1000 cells per hour for this tumour.