Paclitaxel plus cisplatin vs. 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin as first-line treatment for patients with advanced squamous cell esophageal cancer.
Paclitaxel plus cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin treatments are effective strategies for patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. This study was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of paclitaxel plus cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin as first-line chemotherapy for patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. A total of 398 patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma who received chemotherapy were included and divided into 2 groups: paclitaxel plus cisplatin group and 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin group. 195 patients received paclitaxel plus cisplatin and 203 patients received 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin. The objective response rates were 42.5% and 38.4% for paclitaxel plus cisplatin group and 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin group, respectively (P=0.948). The median progression-free survival was 7.85 months (95% CI, 6.77-8.94 months) for the paclitaxel plus cisplatin group and 6.53 months (95% CI, 5.63-7.43 months) for the 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin group with significant difference (P=0.02). The median overall survival was 13.46 months (95% CI, 12.01-14.91 months) for the paclitaxel plus cisplatin group and 12.67 months (95% CI, 11.87-13.47 months) for the 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin group (P=0.204). The first-line chemotherapy of paclitaxel plus cisplatin had better median progression-free survival than 5-fluorouracil plus cisplatin in patients with advanced esophageal squamous cell carcinoma with tolerable toxicities.
Department of Medical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Ying
Y
Liu
Department of Medical Oncology of Nanyang City Center Hospital Nanyang, Henan, China.
Zhonghai
Z
Ren
Department of Surgical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Long
L
Yuan
Department of Medical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Shuning
S
Xu
Department of Medical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Zhihua
Z
Yao
Department of Medical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Lei
L
Qiao
Department of Medical Oncology, Henan Cancer Hospital, The Affiliated Cancer Hospital, Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
Ke
K
Li
5-fluorouracil; Paclitaxel; cisplatin; first-line treatment; squamous cell esophageal cancer