Dichloromethylene diphosphonate action in hematologic and other malignancies.

We have studied the administration of both oral and intravenous dichloromethylene diphosphonate (Cl2MDP) in patients with hypercalcemia and/or hypercalciuria due to increased bone resorption in the setting of multiple myeloma (N = 16) or chronic lymphocytic leukemia (N = 1). The effectiveness of 1600 mg of oral Cl2MDP twice daily was studied in 14 subjects with refractory multiple myeloma, active osteolytic disease and either persistent hypercalciuria (urinary Ca greater than 200 mg per g creatine on a low Ca intake) or hypercalcemia (serum Ca greater than 11.0 mg/dl), in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, 16 week-long trial. Of the 12 patients who received Cl2MDP (2 died in the placebo phase), 11 had marked reductions in urinary calcium (P less than 0.001), which fell into the normal range in 9. Urinary hydroxyproline decreased significantly in 8. Eight of the 11 responders also appeared to have decreases in bone pain associated with Cl2MDP therapy. Similar results were found when this protocol was used in a study of 10 women with breast cancer metastatic to bone. In addition, intravenous Cl2MDP was studied in 12 patients with hypercalcemia of malignancy, of whom 2 had multiple myeloma and 1 had chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) associated with extensive osteolytic bone destruction. We gave 2.5 mg/kg on the first treatment day and 5 mg/kg daily thereafter for up to six more days. Serum calcium fell to normal after a mean of four days in the three patients with hematologic malignancies as well as in eight of the nine with solid tumors. Both urinary Ca and OHP also declined significantly.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)