Source: Seizure  |  Posted 10 years ago

Patients with metastatic breast cancer who relapse following high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell support may benefit from oral capecitabine.

The compound has proved an active and well tolerated first-line therapy for these patients, say American doctors.

According to researchers at the University of California in San Diego, high complete remission rates have been achieved with high-dose chemotherapy and autologous stem cell support in patients with metastatic breast cancer. However, they established that the majority undergoing this treatment will relapse within three years.

Since these patients may not be able to tolerate further myelosuppressive chemotherapy, and the ideal treatment is undefined, the researchers assessed the role of capecitabine as an initial therapy following relapse.

Participants included 10 patients, median age 47 years, whose disease progressed at a median of 246 days (range 69-480) following high dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell support. Four were oestrogen receptor- positive, six had visceral disease. Prior anthracyclines was identified in eight and prior taxanes in 10.

Oral capecitabine 2,500mg/m