["Second line" polychemotherapy in metastatic urothelial cancer of the renal pelvis. Persisting partial remission by 18 treatment cycles of gemcitabine/paclitaxel after 24 treatment cycles gemcitabine/cisplatin "stable disease"].

Moderate activity of systemic chemotherapy for advanced urothelial cancer has been reported for more than 30 years. Only with the advent of potent combination therapy in the mid-1980s have clinically significant response rates and prolonged survival been documented. Due to the small number of cases and poor prognosis, knowledge is scant about the therapeutic effect of "second-line" polychemotherapy in metastatic upper tract urothelial cancer. We report an interesting case of a 59-year-old man suffering from urothelial cancer of the renal pelvis with pulmonary, lymphogenous, and bone metastases who had an unexpected response to "second-line" chemotherapy with only 2 treatment cycles of gemcitabine/paclitaxel (partial remission) after 24 treatment cycles of gemcitabine/cisplatin in "stable disease" with progression between the therapeutic intervals.