• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.59-63
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• 2015

Background: The standard treatment of local advanced nasopharyngeal cancer is chemoradiotherapy. There is a lack of data concerning induction therapy. In this study we retrospectively examined patients treated with induction therapy and chemoradiotherapy. Materials and Methods: Locally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer patients treated between 1996 and 2013 in our clinic were included in the study. Three different induction regimens were administered to our patients in different time periods. The regimen dosages were: CF regimen, cisplatin $50mg/m^2$ 1-2 days, fluorouracil $500mg/m^2$ 1-5 days; DC, docetaxel $75mg/m^2$ 1 day, cisplatin $75mg/m^2$ 1 day; and DCF, docetaxel $75mg/m^2$ 1 day, cisplatin $75mg/m^2$ 1 day, 5-Fu $750mg/m^2$ 1-5 days. Most of the patients were stage III (36.4%) and stage IV (51.7%). Results: Median follow-up time was 50 months (2-201 months). Three-year progression-free survival (PFS) was 79.3%, and 5-year PFS 72.4% in all patients. Three-year overall survival (OS) was 87.4% and 5-year OS 76% in all patients. In terms of induction therapies, 3-year OS was 96.5% in the DCF group, 86.6% in the DC group and 76.3% in the CF group (p=0.03). Conclusions: There was no significant differences in response rate and PFS between the three regimens. OS in the DCF group was significantly higher than in the other groups. However, this study was retrospective and limited toxicity data were available; the findings therefore need to be interpreted with care.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.14 no.12
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• pp.7569-7576
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• 2013

Background: The purpose of this article is to present preliminary results of simultaneous boost irradiation radiotherapy for locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). Methods: Fifty-eight patients who underwent simultaneous boost irradiation radiotherapy for NPC in Cancer Center of Sun Yat-sen University between September 2004 and December 2009 were eligible. Acute and late toxicities were scored weekly according to the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) acute and late radiation morbidity scoring schemes. An especial focus was on evidence of post-radiation brain injury. Also quality of life was analysed according to the EORTC (European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer) recommendations. Discrete variables were compared by ${\chi}^2$ test. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate the survival rates and generate survival curves. Results: A total of 58 patients with a mean follow-up time of 36 months completed clinical trials.Fifty-seven patients (98.3) achieved complete remission in the primary sites and cervical lymph nodes, with only one patient (1.7%) showing partial remission.The most frequently observed acute toxicities during the concurrent chemoradiotherapy were mucositis and leucopenia. Four patients (6.9%) had RTOG grade 3 mucositis, whereas four patients (6.9%) had grade 3 leucopenia. No patient had grade 4 acute toxicity. Three (5.17%) of the patients exhibited injury to the brain on routine MRI examination, with a median observation of 32 months (range, 25-42months). All of them were RTOG grade 0. The 3-year overall, regional-free and distant metastasis-free survival rates were 85%, 94% and 91%, respectively. Conclusion: Simultaneous boost irradiation radiotherapy is feasible in patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. The results showed excellent local control and overall survival, with no significant increase the incidence of radiation brain injury or the extent of damage. A larger population of patients and a longer follow-up period are needed to evaluate ultimate tumor control and late toxicity.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.98-108
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• 2015

Purpose: The outcomes of locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients treated with concurrent chemoradiation (CCRT) using intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) with/without neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NCT) were evaluated. Materials and Methods: Eighty-three patients who underwent NCT followed by CCRT (49%) or CCRT with/without adjuvant chemotherapy (51%) were reviewed. To the gross tumor, 67.5 Gy was prescribed. Weekly cisplatin was used as concurrent chemotherapy. Results: With a median follow-up of 49.4 months, the 5-year local control, regional control, distant metastasis-free survival (DMFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival rates were 94.7%, 89.3%, 77.8%, 68.0%, and 81.8%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, the American Joint Committee on Cancer stage (p = 0.016) and N stage (p = 0.001) were negative factors for DMFS and DFS, respectively. Overall, NCT demonstrated no benefit and an increased risk of severe hematologic toxicity. However, compared to patients treated with CCRT alone, NCT showed potential of improving DMFS in stage IV patients. Conclusion: CCRT using IMRT resulted in excellent local control and survival outcome. Without evidence of survival benefit from phase III randomized trials, NCT should be carefully administered in locoregionally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients who are at high-risk of developing distant metastasis and radiotherapy-related mucositis. The results of ongoing trials are awaited.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.59-63
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• 1991

Thirty-one patients with previously untreated and locally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer were retrospectively reviewed for comparing the effects of radical radiotherapy alone with that of combining chemotherapy and radiotherapy from 1983 to 1989 at Kangnam 51. Mavy's hospital.23/31 were evaluable for recurrence and suwival. There were 8 patients for stage III, and 15 patients for stage IV. Eleven patients were treated with radical radiation therapy done (arm I). Twelve patients were given 1~3 courses of cisplatin-5FU or cisplatin-bleomycin-vincristine prior to radiation therapy (arm II). The two arms were comparable in patient characteristics Of 11 radiotherapy Patients, complete response was 55%(6/11) and Partial response 45%(5/11). Among 12 patients after induction chemotherapy, complete response was 25%(3/12) and partial response 75%(9/12). After subsequent radiotherapy, complete response was increased to 83%(10/12) and partial response was 17%(2/12). Treatment failure was 30%(local recurrence; 3/11, and regional recurrence; 1/11) in arm 1 and 33% (local recurrence; 1/12, regional recurrence; 2/12 and distant metastasis; 1/12) in arm ll . There was no significant difference in survival between arm I and arm II (p> 0.05). The toxicities of treatment were acceptable. More controlled clinical trials must be completed before acceptance of chemotherapy as part of a standard radical treatment for locally advanced nasopharyngeal cancer.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.6129-6132
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• 2012

Objectives: To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of simultaneous accelerated radiation therapy (SMART) and concurrent weekly paclitaxel in the treatment of locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Methods: Forty-one patients with pathologically confirmed nasopharyngeal carcinoma were treated by SMART with concurrent weekly paclitaxel. Daily fraction doses of 2.5 Gy and 2.0 Gy were prescribed to the gross tumor volume (GTV) and clinical target volume (CTV) to a total dose of 70 Gy and 56 Gy, respectively. Paclitaxel of $45mg/m^2$ was administered concurrently with radiation therapy every week. Adjuvant chemotherapy was given four weeks after the completion of the radiotherapy (RT) if the tumor demonstrated only a partial response (PR). Results: All patients completed the radiotherapy (RT) course. Adjuvant chemotherapy was administered to 12 patients due to PR. The CR (complete remission) rate was 82.9% three months after RT. Thirty-nine (95.1%) patients completed the concurrent weekly chemotherapy with paclitaxel, and two patients skipped their sixth course. Seven patients had a 15% dosage reduction at the fifth and sixth course due to grade 3 mucositis. The median follow-up was 30 (range, 14-42) months. The three-year overall survival (OS), metastases-free survival (MFS), and local control rates were 77.0%, 64.4%, and 97.6%, respectively. No correlation between survival rate and T or N stage was observed. Grade 3 acute mucositis and xerostomia were present in 17.1% and 7.1%, respectively. Conclusion: SMART with concurrent weekly paclitaxel is a potentially effective and toxicity tolerable approach in the treatment of locally advanced NPC.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.259-265
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• 1993

Between January 1985 and July 1992, 52 patients with locally advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma were studied retrospectively for the effectiveness of sequential chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The male to female ratio was 3.3:1 with a median age of 41 years. Forty patients had squamous cell carcinoma and the remaining 12 had undifferentiated carcinoma. Seven patients had stage III disease and the remainder had stage IV disease at time of presentation. All patients were treated two courses of chemotherapy followed by radiation therapy. Chemotherapy consisted of either CVB (cisplatin, vincristine and bleomycin) or CF (cisplatin and 5-FU). Total radiation dose to the primary site ranged from 6000 cGy to 7500 cGy. Neck nodes were given booster treatment to maximum of 7000 cGy, depending on the extent of disease. Local control, overall survival and disease-free survival rates were analyzed. The complete response (CR) rate to chemotherapy was $15\%$ and the partial response (PR) rate was $46\%,$ for overall major response rate of $61\%.$ The CR rate was $87\%$ after radiation therapy. Median follow-up time was 51 months. The overall survival and disease-free survival rates at 36 months were $54\%\;and\;49\%,$ respectively. Median time to relapse was 15 months. The patterns of initial relapse in CR patients was as follows: locoregional failure only, 12 patients; distant metastasis only,11: both,2. Cox's multivariate regression model revealed that nodal status was the single most important independant prognostic factor influencing disease-free survival (p=0.001). Comparision of these results with other published reports with radiation therapy alone showed that a high rate of initial response to chemotherapy did not translate into local control or survival. At present time radiation therapy alone remains the standard treatment for locoregional cancer of the nasopharyngeal cancer. More controlled clinical trials must be completed before acceptance of chemotherapy as a part of treatment of advanced nasopharyngeal carcinoma.

• Radiation Oncology Journal
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.205-210
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• 2001

Purpose : This study tried to evaluate the effectiveness of combined treatment using radiation therapy and concurrent cisplatin as a radiosensitizer in the management of locally advanced head and neck cancer. Materials and methods : From January 1995 to August 1998, 29 evaluable patients with locally advanced head & neck cancels (AJCC stage $II\~IV$) were received curative radiation therapy $(total\;70\~75.6\;Gy/35\~42\;fractions,\;1.8\~2\;Gy/fraction)$ and concurrent cisplatin chemotherapy ($100\;mg/m^2$, D1, D22, D43). The neck dissections were peformed for residual lymphadenopathy. Follow-up ranged from 5 to 55 months (median 24 months). Results : Twenty-one $(72.4\%)$ patients achieved clinical complete responses. The partial response and minimal response rates were $17.2\%\;and\;10.4\%$, respectively. Locoregional failure rate was $27.6\%$, and included 6 patients with local failures, 4 patients with regional failures, and 2 patients with combined local and regional failures. Four of 29 patients $(13.8\%)$ developed distant metastasis. The disease free survival rate at 3 years was $60\%$. Nasopharyngeal primary tumors or complete responders showed significantly higher disease free survival rate. The grade 3 mucositis and nausea/vomiting was noted in $34.5\%$, respectively. Major prolongation of radiation therapy duration was inevitable in three patients. Twenty-one patients $(72.4\%)$ completed 3 courses of cisplatin and 5 patients received 2 courses of cisplatin. Three patients received only one course of cisplatin due to nephrotoxicity and neurotoxicity, and then changed to 5-FU regimen. Conclusions : Concurrent cisplatin-radiation therapy in locally advanced head and neck cancer showed high response rate, reasonable locoregional control, and survival rate. As expected, acute toxicities were increased, but compliance to treatment was acceptable. Assessment of the effect of the combination in this setting requires further accrual and follow-up.