This paper explores the social context of "natural recovery" from problems associated with the misuse of intoxicants. Using data collected from in-depth interviews with 46 former alcohol- and drug-dependent persons, this paper examines how the social capital that these respondents had accumulated prior to their addiction and maintained during it aided in their recovery without treatment. We specifically explore how the relations within their lives and the actual and virtual resources available to subjects through their social capital aided in our respondents' "natural recovery" from drug-use related problems. We conclude with a discussion of the implications an analysis of social capital has for the treatment of drug-associated problems as well as for drug policy. [Translations are provided in the International Abstracts Section of this issue.].

This paper examines the characteristics of middle-class alcoholics and drug addicts who terminate their addictions without the benefit of treatment, Using what is commonly referred to as ''natural recovery'' processes, respondents terminated their addictions without formal treatment or self-help group assistance. Data for this study are based on in-depth interviews with 46 alcoholics and drug addicts who were identified through snowball sampling techniques, First, we examine the postaddict identities of our respondents to see how they view themselves in relation to their addictive past, Next, we explore the reasons respondents gave for avoiding treatment and self-help groups. We then examine the factors in our respondents' lives that promoted natural recovery, Finally, this paper concludes with a discussion of the relevance of our findings to clinical treatment and social policy.

We have reported a case of nonanastomotic atherosclerotic aneurysm occurring in an autogenous saphenous vein graft nine years after implantation. This is an unusual development, as aneurysmal degeneration of autogenous vein grafts has been reported only three times previously. In addition, atherosclerotic change in these conduits commonly takes the form of occlusion rather than aneurysm. The loss of elastic tissue seen in our patient's vein graft is uncharacteristic, but may have predisposed to the development of aneurysmal change.

A 52-year-old woman with small cell neuroendocrine (oat cell) carcinoma of the breast is described. Identical neoplasms have been reported in a variety of extrapulmonary sites, but this is the first description of a primary mammary tumor of this type. The patient had axillary and hepatic metastases at the time of diagnosis, and the clinical course suggests that this tumor behaves in an aggressive fashion, analogous to other small cell neuroendocrine carcinomas. The relationship of small cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast to mammary "carcinoid tumor" or argyrophilic carcinoma is discussed.