European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 5, 1986, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday february 1986 the stars and stripes Page 3 6 medical centers to try moving cancer killers Washington a six additional medical centers will begin testing a prom Ising new cancer treatment that turns Ordi nary White blood cells into roving cancer killers in the body the National cancer Institute announced monday. The treatment pioneered at the Sci and Cal cd last december has until now Only. Cen available at the National institutes of health s clinical Center. But because or its complexity and expense doctors have Only been Able to treat Between four to eight patients per month. Rep. John Grotberg r-Iii., has been in Acoma since last week As a result of complications arising after he underwent the experimental treatment it was announced monday. Medical authorities could not pre dict whether he will recover. The Institute said each of the six participating centers will receive about $500,000 for the experimental trials which should begin within the next two months. Doctors from the centers will come to Sci for training in the procedure. An estimated 300 patients about Fourier month at each Center will be treated in the coming year. The therapy appears most effective against advanced malignant Melanoma and cancers of the kidney and Colon and the program will concentrate upon treating these cancers said Institute spokeswoman Florence Karlsberg. The Sci treatment program is selecting Only patients with advanced kidney cancer or Melanoma but the other centers also will consider Colon cancer patients who respond poorly to Standard therapies according to Karlsberg. Centers identified the following centers some of which Combine the resources of More than one Hospital will take part in the expanded trial new England medical Center bos ton Montefiori medical Center Albert a hew cancer treatment immunotherapy using Lntortoumn-2 growth activator 1. Blood 8 taken fro cancer patient and bosons of White mood cells &r0 extracted 2. Interleukin-2 a human growth substance manufactured using genetic engineering added  White Wood Cero and they Are incubated for three or tour Days 4. More Interteuhn-2 i added to the be Crete and they Are re injected into Fly earner patient repeat treatments Are cancer tutors Onago thu Era Etc suck Conigo Titan no Noons 3. During incubation  blood c0rs at transformed by  a into mfr Ces that can locate an attack cancer Cato Einstein College of Medicine Bronx,. Loyola University medical Center Maywood Iii. University of Texas health science Center Audie Murphy veterans administration Hospital san Antonio Texas cancer research Institute of the medical Center at the University of Cali fornia san Francisco and City of hop National medical Center Duarte Calif. Because of the great Public interest generated by publicity about the new treat ment the Institute said it invited cancer research institutions to submit proposals for further clinical trials. After a review the Institute selected enters noted for these types of trials which also had some experience with the components of the therapy. Or. Steven a. Rosenberg and colleagues at Sci developed the experimental immune system therapy and reported results with the first 25 patients in a National medical journal last december. The researchers said that in 11 of the patients with a variety of cancers tutors shrank by More than 50 percent. One patient with Melanoma a dangerous form of skin cancer that had spread throughout her body ended up having All evidence of her cancer disappear and remained can cer free a year later they said. After the initial wave of publicity Rosenberg revealed that a patient in a subsequent group had died in part As result of the therapy. Rosenberg said the death illustrated that the therapy could have major Adverse Side effects and required additional refinement. A major Side effect is severe fluid retention which can cause breathing failure. While cells treated the therapy involves using a special blood cell separator to extract certain White cells. These cells Are treated with hormone called interleukin-2, a natural substance found in the body that activates parts of the immune system and turned into killer cells known As Lak cells. The Lak cells Are infused Back into the patient who also receives supplemental doses of interleukin-2. The hormone induces the killer cells to reproduce rapidly and attack cancer cells while ignoring Normal cells the researchers said. The demanding procedure which re searchers say now costs Lens of thousands of dollars per patient requires patients Tobe hospitalized in intensive care units Dur ing the therapy. Post offices expanding hours to serve Public better Washington a the . Postal service wants to make the hours of its Post offices better tit the working schedule of Many of its customers. After a Tot at 17 Sites the postal service said monday it has decided to flex ill window noun stir Ling in april. The new hours which will be phased in during the next two years will vary by locale according to business conditions. In Pasadena Calif., one of the test Sites the Lor hours meant a 20 percent increase in Revenue Prim trily from sales of services and products other than Stamps and a drop in customer complaints to near Zero. During the nationwide test clerks kept track of the services they were delivering and found that 69 percent of the transactions during the new hours could not have been handled by vending equipment. Customers mailed packages or purchased postal products and services such As express mail insurance or commemorative Stamps activities that usually require the assistance of a window clerk said Ann Robinson postal service consumer advocate. She said most workers schedules Don t allow them Timeto buy Stamps or mail or pick up packages before or after work. Typically customers who get parcel notices on Mon Day must wait until saturday to pick up their packages she said. To promote the new hours a Public relations Campaign will be launched using the theme we be got time for  Mary Anne King manager of retail sales at the Pasadena Post office said she was Able to adjust window hours without increasing costs. For example saturday window hours were extended from noon until 2 . The clerks who opened at 8 30 ., were scheduled to work eight hour shifts anyway she said. She said they usually spent the rest of their Day As signed to of her duties. Now we keep them doing what they do Best Takin care of customers she said. Express mail was accepted until 6 30 ., she  deadline had been 5 . For a guarantee of next Day delivery. For those trying to pick up packages before work window was opened at 7  Three Days a week. Souvenir envelopes of fatal spaceflight issued Washington a the postal service postmarked thousands of Souve Nir envelopes commemorating the launch of the Jan. 28 space shuttle mis Sion despite the disastrous explosion that killed the Crew and destroyed the orbiter. The envelopes called covers by collectors Bear the design of the Emblem the Crew wore on their uniforms. Since the envelopes had already been turned Over to the postal seme the were routinely postmarked with the Jan. 28-dated Kennedy space Center Cancella Tion which includes a picture of the shuttle and the words for Benefit on Earth  at least one of the covers now in a collector bands was autographed by All even Crew members collectors including Many space enter employees contractors and journalists who cover the space program routinely buy the covers and Nave the Post office cancel them on launch an Landing Days at the appropriate Post of fice. Services handle the preparation processor out of towners. Those who prepared their covers before the disaster Are receiving them with am in the cancellation Mark meaning they were placed in the regular mall Stream the morning of Jan. 28. After the shuttle blew up at 11 39 .,thousands More some without a special design printed on them were mailed by tourists and others seeking a memento of the tragedy. Those carry a pm cancel lation Mark. Unlike other souvenirs of the Mission such As patches hats and to shirts these cannot legally be manufactured after the fact since the postal service will not Back Date cancellations. The four color Emblem on the Enve Lopes prepared in Advance of the flight carries the names of the seven Crew members and a drawing of the shuttle circling the Globe with its payload doors .6pen the design has the backdrop of the american Flag and Halley s Comet streaking through the name of Christ Mcauliffe the teacher who was on the Mission. For recent launches the companies that print the envelopes have prepared about 10,000 cach eted covers As the Yare called. Ken Havekotte of space coast Cove service in Merritt Island fla., said he believes fewer than 20,000 coven were postmarked for last tuesday s Mission Many of them just Blank envelopes with stamp on them mailed after the explosion. Havekotte based his estimate on report from people who operate businesses such As his and from conversations with postal employees. In a Telephone interview he said he bad not decided what to do with the 2,000 envelopes he kept for his business. He said he was offered $200 for one but turned Down the offer. He said his standing order customers will receive their covers for his Standard is Price. I Don t want to exploit this commercially he said. The cover from the tint shuttle launches the most popular he said and it Sells for s3 to $4. He estimated that 30,000souvenir covers were prepared for that flight. Only a few Hundred coven were pre pared when Apollo i burned on the launch pad 19 Yean ago