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Colon Cancer treatment details. Chemotherapy, Biologic therapy.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, United States.

Survival: monthsCountry:United States
Toxiciy Grade:4City/State/Province:Boston, MA
Treatments:Chemotherapy, Biologic therapyHospital:Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Drugs:Journal:Link
Date:Oct 2007

Description:

Patients: This phase III study involved 430 patients with previously untreated metastatic colorectal cancer. These patients ranged in age from 20 to 87 years old.

Treatment: Patients were treated with the chemotherapy drugs fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan (by infusion) with and without bevacizumab; bolus fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan with and without bevacizumab; or capecitabine and irinotecan.

Toxicity: The patients treated with capecitabine and irinotecan had more reports of grade 3 or higher nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, and hand-foot syndrome. Due to toxicities, 25.5% of patients receiving this treatment stopped being in the study. In patients receiving fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan with or without bevacizumab, neutropenia was the most common grade 3 or higher toxicity. Other grade 3 and higher toxicities included hand-foot syndrome, febrile neutropenia, dehydration, diarrhea, vomiting, and nausea.

Results: The median overall survival was 23.1 months for patients treated with an infusion of fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan; 17.6 months for those treated with these drugs through the bolus route; and 18.9 months for patients treated with capecitabine and irinotecan. The median survival time has not been reached for bevacizumab with infusional of fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan, but for bevacizumab and these chemotherapy drugs through the bolus route, the median overall survival was 19.2 months

Support: This study was supported by research funds from Pfizer, which markets irinotecan as Campostar“.

Correspondence: Dr. Charles Fuchs





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