Triweekly oxaliplatin plus oral capecitabine as first-line chemotherapy in elderly patients with advanced gastric cancer.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the efficacy and safety of oxaliplatin plus oral capecitabine (XELOX) as first-line chemotherapy in elderly patients with advanced gastric cancer (AGC).


METHODS
Forty-four previously untreated patients with AGC aged 70 or older participated in the study. They received oxaliplatin 130 mg/m(2) as 2-hour intravenous infusion on day 1 and oral capecitabine 1000 mg/m(2) twice daily on days 1 to 14 every 3 weeks XELOX.


RESULTS
All patients were assessable for toxicity and 41 patients for response. Median age was 75 years (range, 70-83). In total, 215 cycles of XELOX were delivered. The response rate according to Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors was 51.2% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 35.9%-66.5%), with 2 complete responses, 19 partial responses, 11 stable diseases, and 9 progressions. At 9.5 months median follow-up, median time to progression and overall survival were 5.6 (95% CI: 4.6-6.6) and 9.8 months (95% CI: 7.4-12.2), respectively. Toxicities were generally mild. Grades 3 to 4 adverse events included: neutropenia (6 patients, 13.6%), diarrhea (6 patients, 13.6%), thrombocytopenia (5 patients, 11.4%), hand-foot syndrome (4 patients, 9.1%), nausea and vomiting (2 patients, 4.5%), and anemia (1 patient, 2.3%). Neutropenic fever occurred in 2 patients. There was no treatment-related death.


CONCLUSIONS
XELOX is active and well tolerated as first-line chemotherapy for elderly patients with AGC. Given its ease of administration, it represents a good therapeutic option in the elderly.
Dong
Ningning
N
Department Chemotherapy, Shandong Tumor Hospital and Institute, Jinan, China.
Jiang
Wanrong
W
Li
Huiqing
H
Liu
Zhifang
Z
Xu
Xiaoqing
X
Wang
Mingyu
M
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000069287:Capecitabine; D003841:Deoxycytidine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D005260:Female; D005472:Fluorouracil / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009944:Organoplatinum Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage; D000077150:Oxaliplatin; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D016879:Salvage Therapy; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D009944:Organoplatinum Compounds; D000077150:Oxaliplatin; D003841:Deoxycytidine; D000069287:Capecitabine; D005472:Fluorouracil