BACKGROUND: Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma is a chemoresistant cancer for which effective chemotherapy is not yet available. We investigated the efficacy and toxicity of the combination of gemcitabine and cisplatin as second-line chemotherapy in four patients with advanced, progressive intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. METHODS: Four patients were enrolled who had previous chemotherapy with epirubicin, cisplatin and protracted infusion of 5-FU. All these patients treated with gemcitabine 1000 mg/m(2) intravenously (i.v.) on days 1 and 8 for 30 min, cisplatin 75 mg/m(2) i.v. on day 1 for 90 min, given every 21 days. RESULTS: Two patients had partial response (PR), and two had stable disease (SD), with one of the latter showing a decrease in tumor size of 35%. Median time to progression was 5 months (range, 3-9 months) and median survival was 9 months (range, 8-16 months). Toxicity was mild and tolerable. CONCLUSIONS: Gemcitabine and cisplatin combination chemotherapy may be an effective regimen for advanced intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. Further study is warranted to determine the efficacy of this combination regimen.
BACKGROUND:Intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma is a chemoresistant cancer for which effective chemotherapy is not yet available. We investigated the efficacy and toxicity of the combination of gemcitabine and cisplatin as second-line chemotherapy in four patients with advanced, progressive intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. METHODS: Four patients were enrolled who had previous chemotherapy with epirubicin, cisplatin and protracted infusion of 5-FU. All these patients treated with gemcitabine 1000 mg/m(2) intravenously (i.v.) on days 1 and 8 for 30 min, cisplatin 75 mg/m(2) i.v. on day 1 for 90 min, given every 21 days. RESULTS: Two patients had partial response (PR), and two had stable disease (SD), with one of the latter showing a decrease in tumor size of 35%. Median time to progression was 5 months (range, 3-9 months) and median survival was 9 months (range, 8-16 months). Toxicity was mild and tolerable. CONCLUSIONS:Gemcitabine and cisplatin combination chemotherapy may be an effective regimen for advanced intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. Further study is warranted to determine the efficacy of this combination regimen.
Authors: Rosa B Schmuck; Cynthia V de Carvalho-Fischer; Christopher Neumann; Johann Pratschke; Marcus Bahra Journal: Cancer Med Date: 2015-12-09 Impact factor: 4.452