Activity of weekly irinotecan (CPT-11) in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer pretreated with platinum and taxanes.
Irinotecan (CPT-11), a semisynthetic derivative of camptothecin, is active in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). In this report we describe our experience with this drug when used as a single agent in patients with advanced NSCLC refractory to chemotherapy with platinum and taxanes. Nineteen NSCLC patients (thirteen males and six females; 53% adenocarcinoma and 26% squamous cell carcinoma) with a median age of 52 years (range 34-71) and a Karnofsky performance status of 60% (60-80%) were included in the study. At baseline, the patients had a median of two disease sites and had been treated with a median of two prior regimens. Irinotecan was given at a dose of 100 mg/m(2) i.v.) weekly for 4 weeks followed by 1 week of rest. A total of 123 weekly infusions were administered, and each patient received a median of 4 weeks of treatment (range 1-32). All patients were evaluated by intention-to-treat analysis for efficacy and safety. Main toxicities reported were grade 3 neutropenia (10% of patients), diarrhea (10% of patients), and grade 4 thrombocytopenia (5% of patients). The overall clinical response rate was 16% (95% CI: 8-24) with three partial responses and 9 (47%) patients with stable disease. The median time to progression and the median survival time were 7 and 15 weeks, respectively. In conclusion, weekly irinotecan showed antitumoral activity and minimum toxicity in NSCLC patients refractory to platinum and taxanes.
Medical Oncology Department, Hospital Central de Asturias, Oviedo, Spain.
Rosa
R
Sánchez
Emilio
E
Esteban
Isabel
I
Palacio
Yolanda
Y
Fernández
Isabel
I
Muñiz
Jose M
JM
Vieitez
Joaquin
J
Fra
Pilar
P
Blay
Noemí
N
Villanueva
Esther
E
Uña
Beatriz
B
Mareque
Enrique
E
Estrada
Jose M
JM
Buesa
Angel J
AJ
Lacave
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002166:Camptothecin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives*; D002289:Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006402:Hematologic Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000139:chemically induced; D006801:Humans; D000077146:Irinotecan; D017567:Karnofsky Performance Status / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010984:Platinum / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D043823:Taxoids / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D043823:Taxoids; D010984:Platinum; D000077146:Irinotecan; D002166:Camptothecin