Patterns of changes in peripheral blood composition in the course of combination chemotherapy of cancer.

During MOPP (mechloretamine, vincristine, procarbasine and prednisone) chemotherapy in Hodgkin's disease a pattern of haematological injury develops gradually, and the period of maximal disturbances in peripheral blood parameters includes the last two or three months (the last 2 or 3 courses) of treatment with insufficient rebound between the courses. On the contrary, in the case of "synchronization" chemotherapy (vincristine and cyclophosphamide) in lung cancer a pattern of haematological injury develops rapidly, and the period of maximal disturbances in peripheral blood parameters takes only a few days, 7-12 days after each course, with sufficient or enhanced rebound between the courses. These differences are probably due to different scheduling of drugs in these methods of therapy.