Published in:
01-02-2009 | Original Article
Phase II trial of biweekly paclitaxel plus infusional 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin in patients with advanced or recurrent inoperable gastric cancer
Published in: Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology | Issue 3/2009
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Purpose
To investigate the efficacy and safety of combination chemotherapy with biweekly paclitaxel plus infusional 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin in the treatment of patients with advanced or metastatic gastric cancer.
Patients and methods
Chemonaive patients with histologically confirmed advanced or recurrent inoperable gastric cancer were enrolled in the present study. Treatment consisted of paclitaxel (75 mg/m2) and leucovorin (40 mg/m2) as a 2-h intravenous infusion, followed by 5-fluorouracil (2,400 mg/m2) as a 46-h continuous infusion. Cycles were repeated every 2 weeks.
Results
Thirty patients were enrolled in this study. There were 12 partial responses, giving an overall response rate of 40.0%. At a median follow-up of 10.6 months, the median time to progression and median overall survival were 3.9 and 8.8 months, respectively. The most common hematological toxicity was grade 1–2 anemia, which was seen in 83.3% of patients. No grade 4 leukopenia, thrombocytopenia, or anemia was noted. The most common non-hematological toxicity was anorexia, which was seen in 70% of patients, although grade 3 anorexia was noted in only 10% of cases. There was no severe treatment-related morbidity or death.
Conclusion
Combination chemotherapy consisting of biweekly paclitaxel plus infusional 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin was effective and well tolerated in patients with advanced gastric cancers.