Urinary 6-keto-PGF1α level in patients with childhood leukemia/lymphoma; A possible indicator of vascular damage

To determine the effect of anti-neoplastic chemotherapy on the vascular system(s) of children with leukemia/lymphoma, urinary excretion of 6-keto-PGF_1α was measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA).

In 4 patients receiving therapy, 6-keto-PGF_1α increased to a mean of 148 (range; 126–170)% during therapy, la increased returned to pre-treatment level 3–5 days later. In 18 long-term survivors who had completedtherapy, 6-keto-PGF_1α was determined to be a meanof 275 (range; 52–905) ng/g creatinine, and in the healthy control children the mean was 146 (range; 71–348) ng/g creatinine. These results were contrary to our hypothesis that chemotherapy might cause a decreased synthesis of PGI₂, a precursor of 6-keto-PGF_1α, and suggest that increased urinary 6-keto-PGF_1α reflects a vascular response to acute exposure to chemotherapeutic drugs and possible vascular damage due to long-term intensive chemotherapy in pediatric patients with leukemia/lymphoma.