Bleomycin Pulmonary Toxicity

Bleomycin, a new antitumor antibiotic with known pulmonary toxic properties, was administered to a patient with disseminated Kaposi's sarcoma. At a relatively low total dose (180 mg) the patient developed diffuse interstitial pneumonitis and died of respiratory failure. Massive corticosteroid therapy had no beneficial effect. Tumor regression and interstitial pneumonitis and fibrosis were documented at autopsy. Light microscopic and immunofluorescence studies of lung tissue suggest that simillar to busulfan and hexamethonium, lung injury was most likely due to direct toxicity rather than true drug hypersensitivity.