Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow E-letters: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when E-letters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (20)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Stathopoulos, G. P.
Right arrow Articles by Georgoulias, V.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Stathopoulos, G. P.
Right arrow Articles by Georgoulias, V.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Annals of Oncology 14:388-394, 2003
© 2003 European Society for Medical Oncology

Original Paper

Treatment of pancreatic cancer with a combination of irinotecan (CPT-11) and gemcitabine: a multicenter phase II study by the Greek Cooperative Group for Pancreatic Cancer

G. P. Stathopoulos1,+, S. K. Rigatos1, M. A. Dimopoulos2, T. Giannakakis3, G. Foutzilas4, C. Kouroussis5, D. Janninis6, G. Aravantinos6, N. Androulakis5, S. Agelaki5, J. G. Stathopoulos1 and V. Georgoulias5

1 First Department of Medical Oncology, Errikos Dynan Hospital of Athens; 2 Medical Oncology Unit, Department of Therapeutics, Athens Medical School, Alexandra Hospital, Athens; 3 First Department of Medical Oncology, Agii Anargyri Anticancer Hospital, Athens; 4 Medical Oncology Unit, AXEPA Hospital, Thessaloniki; 5 Department of Medical Oncology, University General Hospital of Heraklion, Crete; 6 Second Department of Medical Oncology, Agii Anargyri Anticancer Hospital, Athens, Greece

Received 12 July 2002; revised 17 October 2002; accepted 12 November 2002

Background:

The efficacy and toxicity of gemcitabine (GEM) and irinotecan (CPT-11) is evaluated in previously untreated patients with inoperable or metastatic pancreatic cancer.

Patients and methods:

From January 1999 to July 2001, 60 patients with pancreatic cancer (85% stage IV) were enrolled in a two-step extended phase II trial. Patients were treated with gemcitabine (1000 mg/m2 on days 1 and 8) and CPT-11 (300 mg/m2 on day 8) in cycles of 3 weeks. No prophylactic use of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) was initially planned.

Results:

In an intention-to-treat analysis one (1.7%) complete and 14 (23.3%) partial responses were achieved [objective response rate (ORR) 24.7%; 95% confidence interval 14.04% to 35.96%]. Twenty-two (36.7%) and 23 (38.3%) patients had stable and progressive disease, respectively. The median duration of response was 5 months, the median time to tumor progression (TTP) was 7 months and the median overall survival 7 months. One-year survival was 22.5%. Pain improvement and asthenia during treatment were observed in 45% and 43% of patients, respectively; weight gain occurred in 19.5% of patients. Grade 3 anemia occurred in three (5%) patients who required transfusion of six packed red blood cell (RBC) units. Ten (16.7%) additional patients with grade 2 anemia were treated with recombinant erythropoietin. Grade 3 thrombocytopenia occurred in seven (11.7%) patients and grades 3 and 4 neutropenia in 27 (45%). Ten patients developed febrile neutropenia, two of whom died due to sepsis. Prophylactic use of rhG-CSF was eventually required in 93 (28.3%) of 329 administered cycles. Other toxicities were mild.

Conclusions:

The combination of gemcitabine and irinotecan is an active chemotherapy regimen against pancreatic cancer with a 25% ORR. Toxicity was acceptable for the great majority of patients but with a high percentage of hematopoietic growth factor administration.

Key words: combination, gemcitabine, irinotecan, pancreatic cancer


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Clin. Cancer Res.Home page
L. C. DeRosier, D. J. Buchsbaum, P. G. Oliver, Z.-Q. Huang, J. C. Sellers, W. E. Grizzle, W. Wang, T. Zhou, K. R. Zinn, J. W. Long, et al.
Combination Treatment with TRA-8 Anti Death Receptor 5 Antibody and CPT-11 Induces Tumor Regression in an Orthotopic Model of Pancreatic Cancer
Clin. Cancer Res., September 15, 2007; 13(18): 5535s - 5543s.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Ann OncolHome page
J Taieb, T Lecomte, T Aparicio, A Asnacios, T Mansourbakht, P Artru, D Fallik, J. Spano, B Landi, G Lledo, et al.
FOLFIRI.3, a new regimen combining 5-fluorouracil, folinic acid and irinotecan, for advanced pancreatic cancer: results of an Association des Gastro-Enterologues Oncologues (Gastroenterologist Oncologist Association) multicenter phase II study
Ann. Onc., March 1, 2007; 18(3): 498 - 503.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 JCOHome page
F. Huguet, T. Andre, P. Hammel, P. Artru, J. Balosso, F. Selle, E. Deniaud-Alexandre, P. Ruszniewski, E. Touboul, R. Labianca, et al.
Impact of Chemoradiotherapy After Disease Control With Chemotherapy in Locally Advanced Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma in GERCOR Phase II and III Studies
J. Clin. Oncol., January 20, 2007; 25(3): 326 - 331.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Ann OncolHome page
N. Xiros, P. Papacostas, T. Economopoulos, G. Samelis, E. Efstathiou, E. Kastritis, H. Kalofonos, A. Onyenadum, D. Skarlos, A. Bamias, et al.
Carboplatin plus gemcitabine in patients with inoperable or metastatic pancreatic cancer: a phase II multicenter study by the Hellenic Cooperative Oncology Group
Ann. Onc., May 1, 2005; 16(5): 773 - 779.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Ann OncolHome page
G. P. Stathopoulos, K. Syrigos, A. Polyzos, G. Fountzilas, S. K. Rigatos, N. Ziras, A. Potamiannou, I. Tsiakopoulos, N. Androulakis, G. Aravantinos, et al.
Front-line treatment of inoperable or metastatic pancreatic cancer with gemcitabine and capecitabine: an intergroup, multicenter, phase II study
Ann. Onc., February 1, 2004; 15(2): 224 - 229.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.