Lentinan with S-1 and paclitaxel for gastric cancer chemotherapy improve patient quality of life.
OBJECTIVE
Lentinan (LNT), a purified beta-glucan, is a biological and immunological modifier and has been used as an anticancer drug in combination with 5-fluorouracil for gastric cancer in Japan. In this prospective randomized study, we evaluated the effects of LNT combination with regard to quality of life (QOL) and LNT binding ratio in monocytes.


METHODS
Twenty patients were evaluated for 12 weeks. One cycle was 3 weeks and S-1 (day1-14) and Paclitaxel (days1 and 8) were administered. LNT was used once a week (days 1, 8 and 15) and it was used for all 12 weeks in the LNT 12-wk group and only for the last 6 weeks in the LNT 6-wk group. QOL was evaluated weekly by QOL-ACD, and binding of LNT to monocytes was measured by flow cytometry.


RESULTS
There were individual variations in the binding ratio of LNT to monocytes from 0.16% to 11.95%. Toxicity with chemotherapy was not improved in the LNT 12-wk group, however, the total QOL score was significantly elevated in the LNT 12-wk group (p = 0.018) but not in the LNT 6-wk group.


CONCLUSIONS
LNT combination from the beginning of the chemotherapy may be an important factor for the improvement of patient QOL.
Kataoka
Hiromi
H
Department of Gastroenterology and Metabolism, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Nagoya, Japan. hkataoka@med.nagoya-cu.ac.jp
Shimura
Takaya
T
Mizoshita
Tsutomu
T
Kubota
Eiji
E
Mori
Yoshinori
Y
Mizushima
Takashi
T
Wada
Tsuneya
T
Ogasawara
Naotaka
N
Tanida
Satoshi
S
Sasaki
Makoto
M
Togawa
Shozo
S
Sano
Hitoshi
H
Hirata
Yoshikazu
Y
Ikai
Masahiro
M
Mochizuki
Hisato
H
Seno
Kyoji
K
Itoh
Sachie
S
Kawai
Takashi
T
Joh
Takashi
T
D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000097:blood; D004338:Drug Combinations; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007912:Lentinan / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D010094:Oxonic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D017239:Paclitaxel / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D015996:Survival Rate; D005641:Tegafur / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D004338:Drug Combinations; C079198:S 1 (combination); D005641:Tegafur; D007912:Lentinan; D010094:Oxonic Acid; D017239:Paclitaxel