MEPACRINE HYDROCHLORIDE IN TREATMENT OF MALIGNANT PLEURAL EFFUSION - CONTROLLED RANDOMIZED TRIAL

  • 1 January 1977
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 58  (6) , 319-323
Abstract
The effect of local instillation of mepacrine hydrochloride (quinacrine hydrochloride U.S.P., Atabrine) was compared with triethylenethiophosphoramide (Thiotepa) applied locally and with pleurocentesis alone. Patients (25) with disseminated malignant disease were allocated at random to 1 of these 3 treatments. A finding of more than 500 ml effusion within 3 mo. of instituting treatment was regarded as a failure, and subsequently 1 of the other treatments was used at random. Some 64% of the patients treated with mepacrine responded compared with 27% treated with triethylenethiophosphoramide and 11% treated with pleurocentesis alone.