Prolonged intraperitoneal infusion of 5-fluorouracil using a novel carrier solution.

A novel peritoneal carrier solution, Icodextrin 20 (7.5%), has allowed exploration of prolonged, intraperitoneal (i.p.) infusion of the cytotoxic drug 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). A phase I and pharmacokinetic study was performed to determine the toxicities and maximum tolerated dose of prolonged and continuous intraperitoneal 5-FU in patients with peritoneal carcinomatosis. Seventeen patients were entered into this study. Each patient had a Tenckhoff catheter placed into the peritoneal cavity under general anaesthetic. After initial flushing and gradual increase in exchange volumes with Icodextrin 20, 5-FU was administered daily from Monday to Friday, 50% as a bolus in the exchange bag and 50% in an elastomeric infusor device delivering continuous 5-FU to the peritoneal cavity at 2 ml h-1. Treatment was continued for 12 weeks or until intolerable toxicity developed. Abdominal pain and infective peritonitis proved to be the main dose-limiting toxicities. Initial problems with infective peritonitis were overcome by redesign of the delivery system, and it proved possible to deliver 300 mg m-2 5-FU daily (5 days per week) for 12 weeks. Pharmacokinetic studies showed i.p. steady-state 5-FU concentrations (mean 47 500 ng ml-1) that were > 1000-fold higher than systemic venous levels (mean 30 ng ml-1).     

5-Fluorouracil chemotherapy and pelvic radiation in the treatment of large bowel cancer. Decreased toxicity in combined treatment with 5-fluorouracil administration through the intraperitoneal route

Multimodality cancer therapy commonly involves the interactions of surgeon, radiation therapist, and medical oncologist. This prospective study was undertaken to record possible adverse effects of surgery, external beam radiation therapy, and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) chemotherapy in the treatment of large bowel cancer. The dose of 5-FU by the intraperitoneal (IP) or intravenous (IV) routes was diminished when pelvic radiation therapy was given. The reduction in drug dose that was required was much greater when 5-FU was given IV as compared to IP. The proportion of patients remaining on IV 5-FU chemotherapy was significantly reduced when the patient received pelvic radiation. There was a significant increase in leukopenia and thrombocytopenia when patients received pelvic radiation. Hematologic toxicity was more severe when there was IV compared with IP administration of 5-FU. Pelvic radiation therapy diminished the patient's capacity to receive chemotherapy because of hematologic toxicity. The locoregional administration of 5-FU chemotherapy was better tolerated as part of a multimodality treatment regimen than was systemic administration.     

After thirty years of experience with early postoperative intraperitoneal 5-fluorouracil now saying goodbye

In the management of colorectal and appendiceal peritoneal metastases, intraperitoneal 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) has been used in 3 different ways. It has been used as part of an early postoperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy (EPIC) regimen along with EPIC mitomycin C. This EPIC mitomycin C plus EPIC 5-FU has been shown to be equivalent or inferior to HIPEC. Because it is more work intensive than HIPEC and not superior, its use should be abandoned if HIPEC is available. A second way to use intraperitoneal 5-FU is along with HIPEC. Several studies suggest a survival advantage for the combination of HIPEC with EPIC 5-FU. However, patient ineligibility for EPIC 5-FU in high-risk CRS is more likely the cause for the alleged survival advantage attributed to the combination. A third use of intraperitoneal 5-FU is long-term through a peritoneal access device. This plan for 5-FU use has shown favorable results in three randomized controlled studies. Normothermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (NIPEC) with 5-FU should be considered as a regional chemotherapy component of a randomized trial for prevention or treatment of peritoneal metastases from colorectal or appendiceal cancer. Intravenous oxaliplatin combined with NIPEC 5-FU has been suggested as a bidirectional adjuvant regimen.     

Thiamin status of patients treated with drug combinations containing 5-fluorouracil

Thiamin status has been assessed from whole blood transketolase measurements in patients with cancer in various sites being treated with drug combinations which included 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). Longitudinal measurements in nine patients showed that thiamin deficiency developed during treatment with 5-FU and was corrected by giving 100 mg thiamin per day. Similar evidence of thiamin deficiency was found in 26 patients who had been treated with 5-FU-containing regimens for varying periods of time but was not found in patients treated with regimens not containing 5-FU. Giving high doses of thiamin reduced the high levels of plasma and urinary ribonuclease which was of hepatic origin.     

进展期胃癌术中应用氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂腹腔化疗的临床疗效

目的:探讨进展期胃癌术中应用氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂腹腔化疗临床疗效及影响胃癌预后因素.方法:选取2010年1月至2010年12月于哈尔滨医科大学附属肿瘤医院胃肠外科行R0根治术进展期胃癌患者255例.分为3组,即A组(对照组,仅行手术治疗)、B组(腹腔化疗组,氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂3支)、C组(腹腔化疗组,氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂6支),观察并分析3组临床治疗效果.结果:应用氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂腹腔化疗可延长进展期胃癌患者术后总生存时间,术后3年、5年生存率高于对照组,其中应用6支氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂术后5年生存率要高于应用3支氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂;三组在术后总生存时间和术后1年、3年生存率比较,差异均不具有统计学意义(P＞0.05);5年生存率,差异具有统计学意义(P＜0.05).影响胃癌预后的独立因素包括肿瘤细胞分化程度、病理N分期、病理TNM分期、清扫淋巴结总数和清扫淋巴结阳性数.结论:进展期胃癌术中应用氟尿嘧啶缓释植入剂腹腔化疗可在一定程度上提高胃癌患者术后生存率,值得在临床中应用.     

Experimental study on intraperitoneal administration of 5-fluorouracil for liver metastasis in comparison with intravenous administration

We studied the effects of 5-fluorouracil intraperitoneal administration using mouse liver metastasis model. We inoculated 50 microliters Colon26 cell suspension into the spleen and resected it 15 min after cell inoculation under general anesthesia with Ketamine. Control group (n = 7) had no treatment. The intraperitoneal (i.p.) group (n = 8) and intravenous (i.v.) group (n = 7) underwent the treatment on the 2nd and 4th day after the operation. Experimental chemotherapies consisted of 1.5 ml 5-fluorouracil solution (50 mg/kg) for i.p. group and 0.2 ml 5-fluorouracil solution (50 mg/kg) for i.v. group. On the 14th day after the cell implantation, necropsies were performed. Deposits on mouse livers were counted and the mouse livers weighted. Counting of metastatic liver deposits revealed the number of deposits in the control group was 25.6 +/- 12.9, against 2.9 +/- 1.9 and 16.0 +/- 15.6, in the i.p. and i.v. group, respectively. Significant differences in the number of liver deposits were obtained between the control group and i.p. group, and between i.p. group and i.v. group (p < 0.05). The mean liver weight (mg)/mouse body weight (g) were 76.3 +/- 24.7 in the control group, 54.3 +/- 4.7 in the i.p. group and 60.0 +/- 12.7 in the i.v. group. A significant difference was observed only between the control group and the i.p. group (p < 0.05). I.p. administration of 5-fluorouracil was superior to i.v. administration for control of the liver metastasis. Moreover, the side effect by 5-fluorouracil i.p. treatment was milder than by i.v. therapy. We confirmed the effectiveness of 5-fluorouracil intraperitoneal chemotherapy for the potential liver metastasis and liver micrometastasis. Intraperitoneal chemotherapy is also useful for peritoneal seeding. We think intraperitoneal chemotherapy is a recommendable administration route for gastrointestinal malignancies.     

Phase I and pharmacologic studies of intraperitoneal leucovorin and 5-fluorouracil in patients with advanced cancer

Many patients with gastrointestinal (GI) tumors develop extensive peritoneal and serosal metastasis and/or malignant ascites which respond poorly to available treatments. Twelve patients with tumors confined primarily to the intraabdominal cavity were treated with intraperitoneal (IP) 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in escalating concentrations (2 to 4 mmol/L) in combination with leucovorin (dl-5-formyltetrahydrofolic acid or folinic acid; dl-CF) in a 2-L volume, either by eight consecutive four-hour dwells or once daily for five days. CF dose was 20.8 or 104 mumol/L. Nine of the patients had pancreatic carcinoma, one had stomach carcinoma, and two had hepatobiliary neoplasms. Median age was 62.5 years and median Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status was 3. Toxicity included mucositis, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, leucopenia, skin rash, and abdominal pain, and was similar to that previously reported for IP 5-FU used as a single agent. Four episodes of peritonitis occurred, but all patients responded to antibiotics. At the 20.8 mumol/L dose, dl-CF concentration in the peritoneal fluid declined from 10.4 +/- 3.0 3.0 mumol/L at one hour to 4.9 +/- 2.2 mumol/L at four hours, corresponding to a mean absorption half-life of 127 +/- 49 minutes and a mean peritoneal clearance of 13.0 +/- 4.5 mL/min. Decline was biphasic in all but five of the 19 exchanges evaluated. The levels of l-CF (biologically active isomer of dl-CF) were 2.8 +/- 2.5 mumol/L after 60 minutes and 1.2 +/- 0.7 mumol/L after four hours. The peritoneal area under the concentration v time curve (AUC) for 5-FU increased proportionally with dose. For example, the AUC at 2.0 and 3.5 mmol/L was 129 +/- 25 and 201 +/- 23 mmol/L X minute, respectively. However, the maximal peritoneal to plasma AUC ratio was 461 at the 2 mmol/L dose, but decreased with increasing doses as systemic clearance decreased. This regimen was well tolerated in patients with advanced cancer, but must be evaluated further to determine its clinical efficacy.     

Cardiotoxicity during chemotherapy treatment with 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin

Cardiotoxicity of 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin chemotherapy for esophageal, head and neck and gastric carcinoma was studied. Before treatment all patients had a cardiac evaluation and during treatment serial electrocardiographic (ECG) recordings were performed. In the pre-treatment evaluation signs of cardiovascular disease were found in 31(38.75%) patients. During treatment cardiotoxicity was observed in 12(15%) patients. The incidence of cardiotoxicity was not higher in patients with signs of cardiovascular disease than in those without in the pre-treatment evaluation. The most common signs of cardiotoxicity were chest pain, ST-T wave changes and arrhythmia. This study suggests that patients on 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin treatment should be under close supervision and that the treatment should be discontinued if chest pain and/or arrhythmias are observed.     

Gastrointestinal anastomotic healing during treatment with perioperative 5-fluorouracil

This clinical study examines the influence of perioperative administration of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) on gastrointestinal anastomotic healing. Intravenous 5-FU, 10 mg/kg body weight, was started during surgery and continued for 9 days only when advanced cancer was detected. A total of 32 gastric and enteric anastomoses were performed. All 32 patients with anastomoses recovered without any clinical evidence of leakage. Side effects attributed to 5-FU appeared in five patients, usually in a mild form of diarrhea and vomiting. On the whole, the course of recovery of this group was no different than expected from patients with advanced malignancy undergoing extensive surgery. Based on this, it appears that 5-FU administration during and immediately after surgery has no deleterious effect on the gastrointestinal tract.     

Early postoperative intraperitoneal chemotherapy with mitomycin C, 5-fluorouracil and cisplatin for advanced gastric cancer

OBJECTIVE: The long-term survival of patients who undergo surgery for stage IV gastric cancer is poor, due to metastatic spread of the tumor. Intraperitoneal chemotherapy (IPT) as a possible treatment for peritoneal dissemination has been investigated in a number of different tumors. The aim of this study was to investigate the toxicity and impact of early postoperative IPT on the survival of patients with advanced gastric cancer. METHODS: Between 1993 and 1997, a total of 91 patients with stage IV gastric cancer who underwent potentially curative or palliative resection received intraperitoneal mitomycin C before closure of the abdominal wound. 5-Fluorouracil and cisplatin were administered intraperitoneally on postoperative days 1-4, and this was repeated at 4-week intervals. RESULTS: All patients received a median of 3 IPT perfusions. There were 24 (26.4%) postoperative complications and 1 (1.1%) mortality. The most frequent hematologic toxicity (grade 3-4) was leukopenia. The major nonhematologic toxicities (grade 3-4) were emesis and nephrotoxicity. After a median follow-up period of 26 months, 14 patients remain alive without evidence of recurrence, whereas 75 patients died due to recurrence or progression of disease. The median survival period for all 91 patients was 15.4 months. When survival according to the residual tumor was analyzed, median survival was 36.0 months in the R0 (curative resection) group, 20.6 months in the R1 group (margins of resected specimens showing microscopic residual tumor or diameter of each residual tumor less than 3 mm) and 9.0 months in the R2 group (macroscopic residual tumor larger than 3 mm) (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: IPT was found to be safe, and it appears to improve the prognosis in patients with minimal residual tumors. However, complete cytoreductive surgery is mandatory for achieving the beneficial effect of IPT.     

维拉帕米联合5-氟脲嘧啶腹腔内化疗对荷肝癌大鼠的抗肿瘤作用

Objective To study the antineoplastic effect of the calcium channel blocker verapamil and 5-fluorouracil intraperitoneal chemotherapy on hepatocarcinoma-bearing rats, and examine the action between calcium channel blockers and cytotoxic drugs. Methods We adopted the method of subcapsular implantation of carcinoma tissues of walker-256 in the left liver lobe as a model of liver carcinoma-bearing rats. All experimental animals were divided into four groups. On the sixth day post implantation, in group A (control group) 6 ml of saline was injected intraperitoneally once a day for 3 days. In group B (single chemotherapy group) 6 ml, of 5-Fu 75 mg/kg was injected intraperitoneally once a day for 3 days. In group C (combination of treatment group) both 5-Fu (75 mg/kg) and verapamil (25 mg/kg) were administered simultaneously as in A and B. In group D (simple verapamil group) only 6 ml of verapamil (25 mg/kg) was administered as above. Results Compared with groups A, B and D, The volume of cancer and the contents of liver cancer DNA and protein were significantly reduced. The rates of inhibiting cancer (89.9% in group C and 35.4% in group B) were significantly increased in group C. Group C had significantly long survival time compared to groups A, B and D (P<0.05). By light microscopy, a number of focal necroses were found in cancer tissue in group C. Conclusion Calcium channel blockers can enhance the antineoplastic effect of 5-Fu intraperitoneal chemotherapy to liver cancer: The use of verapamil can not increase the toxicity of 5-Fu.     

A phase II trial of 5-fluorouracil and high-dose leucovorin in gastric carcinoma and a phase I trial of intraperitoneal 5-fluorouracil and leucovorin

Twenty-five patients with advanced measurable gastric carcinoma were treated with D,L-leucovorin (CF) (500 mg/m2) administered as a 2-hour infusion and FUra (600 mg/m2) iv push midinfusion. Patients were treated weekly for 6 weeks followed by a 2-week rest. Median age was 57 (range 32 to 82). Median Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status was 2 (range 0 to 4). Thirteen patients had progressed on previous combination chemotherapy that included FUra. At the time of this report, 19 patients were evaluable for response: 3 patients had partial responses, 8 had stable disease, and 8 progressed (but 3 of these received only 3 or fewer treatments before early disease-related death). Two of the responders were previously treated with FUra. Four patients were too early to evaluate. Measurable responses of greater than 50% were seen in bone, liver, lung, and an abdominal mass. Diarrhea occurred in 9 patients and FUra dose reduction was necessary in 8 of them. Other toxicities included lacrimation, rash, nausea, and mucositis. One toxic death occurred. Nine patients with gastrointestinal tumors confined primarily to the intra-abdominal space were treated with ip FUra in escalating doses (2 mM to 4 mM) in combination with D,L-CF in a 2-liter volume, either by 8 consecutive 4-hour dwells (7 patients) or once daily for 5 days (2 patients). The D,L-CF dose was 20.8 microM except for the first day of the 5-day schedule when it was 104 microM. Toxicity included leukopenia, mucositis, nausea and vomiting, skin rash, and abdominal pain. Three episodes of peritonitis resolved with antibiotics.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Prolonged retention of high concentrations of 5-fluorouracil in human and murine tumors as compared with plasma

Summary Concentrations of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) and its active metabolite 5-fluoro-2-deoxy-5-monophosphate (FdUMP) were measured in biopsy specimens of tumor tissue, normal mucosa, metastatic liver nodules, and normal liver tissue obtained from 39 patients and in two murine colon tumors (colon 26 and colon 38) after a single injection of 5FU at a therapeutic dose (500 mg/m² and 100 mg/kg, respectively). These data were compared with plasma concentrations. Peak plasma concentrations (300–500 m) of 5FU were comparable in human and murine plasma. The half-life of plasma elimination (during the period from 15 to 120 min) in both mouse and man ranged from 10 to 20 min, whereas at between 2 and 8 h, plasma concentrations varied from 0.1 to 1 m, the half-life being about 100 min. In both species, 5FU could be measured in plasma at concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 1 m for several days after 5FU treatment. 5FU concentrations in tissue samples obtained from 14 patients were measured during the time range of 1–6 h, those in samples taken from 7 patients, during the interval of 19–27 h; and those in samples obtained from 18 patients, within the interval of 40–48 h after injection. 5FU tumor concentrations varied between 0.78–21.6, 0.44–6.1, and 0.17–10.8 mol/kg wet wt., respectively. Some of the 48-h samples were obtained from patients who had received leucovorin plus 5FU; coadministration of leucovorin did not alter 5FU tissue concentrations. At between 4 and 48 h, the tissue concentration/plasma concentration ratio was at least 10. 5FU concentrations in murine tumors were measured for up to 10 days after 5FU administration, with plateau 5FU tumor concentrations being about 50 mol/kg wet wt. in colon 38 and about 200 mol/kg wet wt. in colon 26 at 2 h after treatment; after 4 days, values of 0.5 and 4.8 mol/kg, respectively, were obtained and after 10 days, respective concentrations of 0.1 and 0.07 mol/kg were detected. The FdUMP concentrations measured in colon 26 and colon 38 tumors were 214 and 46 pmol/g, respectively, at 2 h after 5FU administration, and these values subsequently decreased to about 15 pmol/g in both tumors. In human tumors the initial FdUMP concentration ranged from 10 to 1000 pmol/g; at later time points the level of FdUMP was just above the detection limit of the assay. In liver metastases, high 5FU concentrations seemed to be related to high levels of FdUMP, which was likely of importance for the antitumor effect. The prolonged retention of 5FU should be taken into consideration in the design of biochemical modulation studies.