Background/aims: 5-FU plus Cisplatin combination therapy had been employed against primary liver carcinomas for years. S-1 is a fourth-generation oral fluoropyrimidine and attracts considerable interest for the activity against gastric cancer. We herein examined the effect and adverse effects of S-1 plus Cisplatin combination therapy for primary liver carcinomas.
Methodology: 4 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and 3 with cholangiocellular carcinoma (CCC) were employed for this study. They all had far-advanced diseases in and/or out of the liver at the time of the therapy initiation. They were 4 men and 3 women. Their ages were in the range of 42-73 (58 +/- 9.73, mean +/- SD) years old. The protocol of the therapy is a 3-week period of S-1 (70-80 mg/m2/day) oral administration combined with 2 intravenous administration of CDDP (20-35 mg/m2) during the period. With two weeks of intermission, the therapy was repeatedly performed 2-11 times for each patient.
Results: Three patients had PR and 2 had NC response with the therapy. Two patients with HCC and pre-treatment with 5-FU had PD response. Although the patients developed leukopenia and thrombocytopenia, the therapy was well tolerable also in the outpatient basis.
Conclusions: S-1 plus Cisplatin combination therapy is a potential therapy for advanced primary liver carcinomas.