부산대학교 도서관

BACKGROUND:: Although small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a primarily highly chemosensitive malignancy, the majority of patients will ultimately relapse. As part of an ongoing effort to identify active new agents, the efficacy of treosulfan in patients with relapsed SCLC was examined in a monoinstitutional phase II trial. MATERIAL AND METHODS:: Between January 1995 and September 1996, 15 previously treated patients (limited disease n = 1, extensive disease n = 14) with refractory (n = 1) or relapsed (n = 14) SCLC were included in this prospective phase II study. The patients received treosulfan 8 g/m intravenously as a short infusion every 4 weeks. The application was terminated in case of disease progression. RESULTS:: 14 patients are evaluable for response and toxicity after receiving 1-6 courses of treosulfan. No complete or partial remissions were seen. Three patients achieved a stable disease lasting 2, 3 and 10 months, respectively. Eleven patients showed disease progression. The most common toxicities were thrombocytopenia (14% WHO grade 3-4) and leukocytopenia (5% WHO grade 3). Nonhematological toxicities, e.g. alopecia, nausea, vomiting, stomatitis and skin reactions, were moderate and mild. CONCLUSIONS:: No major efficacy was seen using treosulfan as second-line therapy in patients with extensive disease SCLC. There are no sufficient data, however, on the effectiveness of treosulfan in front-line therapy.