Objective: To estimate the rate of relapse in men with stage I nonseminomatous germ cell tumours (NSGCT) of the testis treated with one cycle of chemotherapy instead of the usual two cycles.
Patients and methods: Between 1992 and 1996, 22 men with stage I NSGCT who had normalized tumour markers after orchidectomy and negative findings on computed tomography, and who were at moderate risk of relapse, were treated with one cycle of platinum-containing chemotherapy (bleomycin and etoposide with either cisplatin or carboplatin).
Results: At a median follow-up of 10.2 years, none of the patients have relapsed with malignant GCTs.
Conclusion: The results after one cycle of chemotherapy are no worse than after two cycles. The present study needs to be replicated in a larger cohort of patients to define the relapse risk more accurately. This approach is soon to be tested in a large multicentre trial randomizing patients between one and two cycles.