Announcements

** BI-RG-587 Trial Begins

On April 19 AIDS TREATMENT NEWS reported that the planned dose-ranging trial of BI-RG-587 had not yet begun, and that the drug had been taken by no more than a dozen people, none of whom received more than a single dose. The new trial (ACTG 0164) opened later in April, but at this time only 30 volunteers are being enrolled, at two sites: San Diego, California, and Worcester, Massachusetts. The San Diego site already has enough volunteers to fill its immediate openings; we do not know about Worcester. This trial requires weekly visits to the study site, so it is not feasible for persons living in other areas.

The first three doses tested will be 12.5, 50, and 250 mg per day. BI-RG-587 is taken orally, once per day. Doses will escalate until there is either toxicity, or good efficacy. Volunteers for this trial must have T-helper counts under 400 and meet other medical criteria. For more information about possible enrollment, call 800/TRIALS-A.

If this small trial proves successful, then a larger trial (ACTG 0168) could begin soon, possibly as early as July. Plans call for ACTG 0168 to include a very important test of BI-RG-587 in combination with AZT. In addition, a pediatric trial (ACTG 0165) of BI-RG-587 could also begin in the next couple months.

** Chronic Diarrhea: Sandostatin Trial Recruiting

Sandostatin (also called octreotide acetate), a drug which provides symptomatic relief from certain kinds of diarrhea, is being tested at trial sites in at least 15 locations across the U. S. This trial is sponsored by Sandoz Pharmaceuticals Corporation.

Sandostatin is already available as a prescription drug, approved by the FDA for treating diarrhea caused by certain cancers. This trial was designed to test whether the drug is also effective for AIDS-related diarrhea which cannot be treated by other means.

Volunteers may receive a placebo, but only during the first four weeks. After that time, plans are to treat everyone with the drug, for a second phase of the study lasting at least six months.

Sandostatin, a peptide with eight amino acids, mimics the action of somatostatin, a hormone which occurs naturally in the body. Sandostatin lasts much longer in the blood, however; it has a half-life of two to three hours, compared to one to three minutes for somatostatin. The drug is given by subcutaneous injection.

Comment

The first choice for diarrhea therapy is, of course, to find and treat the cause -- often an infection by protozoa, bacteria, or viruses. But if the cause cannot be diagnosed and treated successfully, it is still important to control the diarrhea, to prevent malnutrition and to improve quality of life.

Sandostatin is available by prescription, but the drug is expensive. Also, physicians may be reluctant to prescribe it, since at this time there is no proof that it works for AIDS- related diarrhea. In the trial, the drug is free.

For More Information

The Sandostatin trial is recruiting in at least 15 locations in the U. S.: Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Galveston, Houston, Philadelphia, Portland, New York City, Long Island, Miami, Madison, Los Angeles, Washington, D. C., San Francisco, and San Diego; other sites may be added. For information about trial locations and enrollment, call the Sandoz hotline, 800/732-8096, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time.

** Advertising Competition: Ads Against AIDS

Advertising professionals and others are invited to submit their ideas to a nationwide competition organized by Ads Against AIDS, which will then fully produce the winners and air them nationally and locally as public-service TV and radio spots. The goal is to raise peoples' awareness that AIDS is their concern, and to give them an option for a positive response. Awards will be presented at a benefit dinner in New York on November 6, co-produced by People Taking Action Against AIDS (PTAAA), a fundraising organization which since 1987 has raised over $800,000 for AIDS care and research.

Advertising leaders supporting this effort include Phil Dusenberry, chairman-CEO of BBDO, New York; Jack Mariucci, executive VP-executive creative director of DDB Needham, New York; and Helayne Spivack, executive VP-executive creative director of Young and Rubicam, New York. Mr. Mariucci is co- chairman of Ads Against AIDS.

The winning public-service announcements will also be made available to grassroots organizations throughout the country, for placement in their local media. TV spots will include a five- second tag for the local group's identification.

For more information, contact Ads Against AIDS, 31 West 26th Street, Ground Floor, New York, NY 10010, phone 212/481-1374, fax 212/689-5291.

** San Francisco: Fundraiser for AIDS TREATMENT NEWS
June 16 at Eureka Theater

by Tim Wilson

AIDS TREATMENT NEWS and Project Inform will be the beneficiaries of a special performance of Tony Kushner's Angels in America: Part One, a community fundraising event hosted by San Francisco's Eureka Theatre, 2730 16th Street (at Harrison), on Sunday, June 16, at 6:30 p.m. One hundred tickets at $35 are now available through ATN Publications on a first come basis; an additional 100 tickets will be available through Project Inform.

Angels in America is a world-premiere commission by the Eureka Theatre comprised of two complete plays directed by David Esbjornson: a fully conceived production of Millennium Approaches and a minimalistic presentation of the just completed Perestroika. The June 16 benefit will feature a reception with playwright Tony Kushner at 6:30 p.m., followed by a special performance of Millennium Approaches at 7:30 p.m. The benefit date was chosen to coincide with the opening of the VII International Conference on AIDS in Florence.

Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes is a compelling yet funny epic set during the eight years of the Reagan administration. Millennium Approaches (Part One) begins the stories of two couples, one gay and one Mormon, as they engage in parallel struggles to reconcile love and responsibility. As the new millennium draws closer, relationships and old orders begin to crumble, the hole in the ozone widens, AIDS knocks at the door of the Justice Department, and supernatural intervention becomes unavoidable. Perestroika (Part Two, a work in progress -- not part of the benefit performance) moves from the death bed of notorious right wing lawyer Roy Cohn to the Soviet Union, and from Salt Lake City to Heaven itself. Having broken old bonds, the characters of Millennium seek hope, as well as spiritual and political transformation, within a cataclysmic world.

The largest project ever mounted by the Eureka Theatre, Angels in America was originally commissioned by the Eureka in 1987. The project has been in development ever since. During a 1989 Mark Taper Forum workshop production, Millennium Approaches was hailed as "an epic theatrical fever dream" (Variety) which "transcends conventional sexual, ethnic, literary and political boundaries" (Los Angeles Times). Millennium has received a major grant from the Fund for New American Plays, a project of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts with support from American Express Company in cooperation with the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities.

Interested persons can send a check for tickets to the special June 16 benefit performance ($35 each) directly to ATN Publications, Attn.: Eureka Benefit, P. O. Box 411256, San Francisco, CA 94141. Tickets and/or a confirmation letter will be sent by return mail. After Friday, May 31, call 415/255-0588 to make sure tickets are still available.

This special performance has been supported by American Express Company.