title: Oral 5-fluorouracil in squamous cell carcinoma of the skin in the aged.
abstract: Multiple or recurrent squamous cell skin carcinoma is a rare tumor in the aged. These patients are currently treated with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) cream as a local chemotherapy; in cases in which the disease progresses, few treatments are available. Two reports deal with the treatment of progressive squamous cell skin carcinoma with systemic 5-FU, but in only eight patients age less than 70 years. We prospectively investigated oral 5-FU therapy in 14 consecutive patients (average age 76 1/2 years) with histologically proven squamous cell skin carcinoma. The disease was aggressive, multiple, or recurrent and had not been eradicated by surgery, radiation therapy, topical 5-FU cream, and non-5-FU chemotherapy. Oral 5-FU was administered as mannitol-coated 5-FU tablets at the daily dose of 175 mg/m2 for 3 weeks every 5 weeks. Toxicity, effectiveness, quality of life, and compliance to therapy were evaluated. Total cycles amounted to 55 (range: 2-6, mean: 4 for each patient) at an average dose intensity of 740 mg/m2/week for from 12 to 36 weeks. Only gastrointestinal toxicity World Health grade I occurred. Quality of life and compliance to therapy were 90%. Therapy induced measurable improvement in nine patients (64.3%): two partial remissions (14.3%), three minimal remissions (21.4%), and four arrests of disease (28.6%) with a median duration of 30+ months. The study ended because of a lack of patients. We can conclude that, if elderly patients require chemotherapy because of progressive multiple or advanced squamous cell skin carcinoma, appreciable results may be obtained with oral 5-FU as a single agent.
authors.affiliation: Operative Unit of Medical Oncology and Prevention Cancer Center, National Hospital S. Maria della Misericordia, Udine, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cartei
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cartei
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Interlandi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Meneghini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jop
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zingone
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tabaro
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mazzoleni
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000964:Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005472:Fluorouracil / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D011788:Quality of Life; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000964:Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic; D005472:Fluorouracil