BACKGROUNDVasodilatory shock that does not respond to high-dose vasopressors is associated with high mortality. We investigated the effectiveness of angiotensin II for the treatment of patients with this condition. METHODSWe randomly assigned patients with vasodilatory shock who were receiving more than 0.2 μg of norepinephrine per kilogram of body weight per minute or the equivalent dose of another vasopressor to receive infusions of either angiotensin II or placebo. The primary end point was a response with respect to mean arterial pressure at hour 3 after the start of infusion, with response defined as an increase from baseline of at least 10 mm Hg or an increase to at least 75 mm Hg, without an increase in the dose of background vasopressors. RESULTSA total of 344 patients were assigned to one of the two regimens; 321 received a study intervention (163 received angiotensin II, and 158 received placebo) and were included in the analysis. The primary end point was reached by more patients in the angiotensin II group (114 of 163 patients, 69.9%) than in the placebo group (37 of 158 patients, 23.4%) (odds ratio, 7.95; 95% confidence interval [CI], 4.76 to 13.3; P<0.001). At 48 hours, the mean improvement in the cardiovascular Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (scores range from 0 to 4, with higher scores indicating more severe dysfunction) was greater in the angiotensin II group than in the placebo group (−1.75 vs. −1.28, P = 0.01). Serious adverse events were reported in 60.7% of the patients in the angiotensin II group and in 67.1% in the placebo group. Death by day 28 occurred in 75 of 163 patients (46%) in the angiotensin II group and in 85 of 158 patients (54%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.57 to 1.07; P = 0.12). CONCLUSIONS 420T h e ne w e ngl a nd jou r na l o f m e dicine S hock is a life-threatening syndrome characterized by decreased organ perfusion that can progress to irreversible organ failure. 1 Vasodilatory shock is the most common type of shock and is characterized by peripheral vasodilation and reduced blood pressure despite preserved cardiac output. 2 Vasodilatory shock requires immediate treatment to ensure organ perfusion through the reestablishment of adequate blood pressure while the underlying cause of shock is identified and treated. 3 Vasopressors are used when intravenous fluid resuscitation alone fails to restore blood pressure. Patients with severe vasodilation who have hypotension despite the use of high doses of vasopressors have a poor prognosis, with 30-day all-cause mortality exceeding 50%. 4,5 Currently, only two classes of vasopressors are available: catecholamines (and other sympathomimetic amines) and vasopressin. 3 Both classes have narrow therapeutic windows owing to substantial toxic effects at high doses. 6 However, when hypotension occurs, human physiology engages a third system, which is represented by hormones in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS). 7 Previously, modified bovine angiotensin II was shown to elicit consis...

Slow-growing cell populations located within solid tumors are difficult to target selectively because most cells in normal tissues also have low replication rates. However, a distinguishing feature between slow-growing normal and tumor cells is the hypoxic microenvironment of the latter, which makes them extraordinarily dependent on anaerobic glycolysis for survival. Previously, we have shown that hypoxic tumor cells exhibit increased sensitivity to inhibitors of glycolysis in three distinct in vitro models. Based on these results, we predicted that combination therapy of a chemotherapeutic agent to target rapidly dividing cells and a glycolytic inhibitor to target slow-growing tumor cells would have better efficacy than either agent alone. Here, we test this strategy in vivo using the glycolytic inhibitor 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2-DG) in combination with Adriamycin (ADR) or paclitaxel in nude mouse xenograft models of human osteosarcoma and non-small cell lung cancer. Nude mice implanted with osteosarcoma cells were divided into four groups as follows: (a) untreated controls; (b) mice treated with ADR alone; (c) mice treated with 2-DG alone; or (d) mice treated with a combination of ADR ؉ 2-DG. Treatment began when tumors were either 50 or 300 mm 3 in volume. Starting with small or large tumors, the ADR ؉ 2-DG combination treatment resulted in significantly slower tumor growth (and therefore longer survival) than the control, 2-DG, or ADR treatments (P < 0.0001). Similar beneficial effects of combination treatment were found with 2-DG and paclitaxel in the MV522 non-small cell lung cancer xenograft model. In summary, the treatment of tumors with both the glycolytic inhibitor 2-DG and ADR or paclitaxel results in a significant reduction in tumor growth compared with either agent alone. Overall, these results, combined with our in vitro data, provide a rationale for initiating clinical trials using glycolytic inhibitors in combination with chemotherapeutic agents to increase their therapeutic effectiveness.

A single course of iodine I 131 tositumomab was significantly more efficacious than the LQC received by extensively pretreated patients with chemotherapy-refractory, low-grade, or transformed low-grade NHL and had an acceptable safety profile.