Faculty Bibliography

We report the results of an ongoing Phase II study of paclitaxel (Taxol) and DDP in women with metastatic breast cancer. Paclitaxel is administered at 200 mg/m2 iv 24 hr infusion on d1, bolus DDP at 75 mg/m2 d2; G-CSF 5 mcg/kg SQ qd d3 until WBC recovery, with premedications of dexamethasone, cimetidine, and diphenhydramine. Eligibility criteria are: age greater than 18, ECOG PS less than or equal to 2, measurable/evaluable disease, adequate BM, liver, and renal functions, no prior paclitaxel or DDP, and informed consent. Pts may have received adjuvant (adj) therapy (Rx) greater than 1 yr prior to enrollment and less than or equal to 1 prior chemotherapy (CT) regimen for metastatic disease. 27 pts are enrolled on study. Pt characteristics: median age 50 (range 25-69), stage IV 23, stage IIIB, prior adj CT 18, CT 2, hormone 9. Disease sites include lung 13, bone 11, soft tissue 12, lymph node 11, and liver 3 (19 pts have greater than or equal to 2 sites). 27 pts received 111 cycles, median of 5 cycles/pt. Of 21 evaluable pts, there were 2 CR, 9 PR, 9 SD, and 1 PD (overall response rate 52%) [1 pt was non-evaluable (toxic death in cycle 1); 5 pts are too early]. The median duration of response is 3+ months (range 1-12+ months). 16/27 pts (59%; (33/111 cycles)) had grade 4 neutropenia. 17 pts had grade greater than or equal to 2 fatigue (WHO). 9/27 (33%; 12 cycles) required RBC Tx. 8 pts went off study because of cumulative neuropathy. Other off study reasons: 5 PD, 1 toxic death (sepsis), anaphylaxis to DDP-1, and 2 pts went to surgery. Conclusion: Paclitaxel/DDP is an active regimen as first line therapy for metastatic breast cancer, but acute myelosuppression and cumulative neurotoxicity are limiting. (C) American Society of Clinical Oncology 1997

PURPOSE: A phase I trial of WR2721 was initiated to determine the maximal safe dose for incorporation into a consecutive 5-day schedule of cisplatin administered concurrently with radiation therapy in patients with cervical cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: WR2721 was administered at 340 to 910 mg/m2/d immediately before cisplatin. Cisplatin was administered at 20 mg/m2/d for 5 days every 3 weeks in combination with external-beam radiation therapy and at 100 mg/m2 after each brachytherapy treatment. Pelvic radiation consisted of external-beam therapy to a dose of 39.6 Gy, followed by brachytherapy with cesium 137 tandem and ovoid insertions to deliver 80 Gy to point A and 55 Gy to point B. RESULTS: Twenty patients were enrolled; 19 were assessable. The dose-limiting toxicity of WR2721 was hypotension. No patients developed serious sequelae, but hypotension required a reduction in the dose of WR2721 at the highest dose level tested. The major grade 3 or 4 toxicities included transient azotemia (five of 19), leukopenia (nine of 19), vomiting (four of 19), and neurotoxicity (two of 19). One patient experienced an anaphylactic reaction to cisplatin. CONCLUSION: The recommended dose of WR2721 administered in conjunction with cisplatin on a daily x 5 schedule plus radiation therapy is 825 mg/m2/d for 5 days.

A 68-year-old woman was found to have synchronous soft-tissue sarcoma of the anterior chest wall and adenocarcinoma of the breast. During her initial interview, she denied prior radiation therapy. On further questioning, it was learned that the patient had been treated for tuberculosis, as a young woman, by the induction of a pneumothorax that was monitored by repeated chest fluoroscopies. Biologically important doses of ionizing radiation can be given as an incidental part of a variety of medical treatments. The importance of searching for atypical radiation exposures, particularly in patients with unusual tumor presentations, is stressed

Topotecan (TPT), a semi-synthetic, water soluble analog of camptothecin (CPT), acts by topoisomerase-1 inhibition. Previous studies with CPT analogs in human xenograft-bearing mice show that prolonged depot administration at nontoxic doses were curative (Giovanella et al, Science, 246:1046, 1989). We treated 33 patients (pts) (16 F, 17 M) with prolonged continuous infusion using ambulatory CADD pumps delivering 7 cc/day (d) with cassette changes every 3 d. Cohorts of 4-6 pts began at a dose of 0.2 mg/m2/day x 7 days with escalation to 10, 14, 17, and 21 days q 28 d. Further escalations were 0.3, 0.4, and 0.53 mg/m2/d x 21 d q 28 d. Disease sites included colon ca (13), NSCLC (4), sarcoma (3), gastric (3), ovarian (3), pancreatic (2); H and N, breast, renal, melanoma, anal (each 1). Median age was 63 (range 29 -79) yr; PS 1 (0-2); prior chemo = 33 (med 2 regimens); prior RT=10. A total of 72 cycles (med 2, range 1-6) were given for a total of 1090 pt-days of infusion. One infectious complication was seen (Mediport-pocket), 4 pts required transfusion; one pt with 3 prior chemo regimens and pelvic RT developed gr 4 leukopenia and thrombocytopenia at the 0.4 mg/m2 x 21 d level. No other hematologic toxicity has been observed. Nonhematologic toxicity included fatigue only. Steady state plasma conc for the active lactone form of TPT at 0.4 mg/m2/d was 1.4 +/- 0.29 ng/ml (N=3) and 4.4 +/- 0.99 (N=3) at the 0.53 level. Best responses were 1 PR (NSCLC), 1 mixed response (breast), 11 stable, 15 progression and 5 too early. TPT administration by this schedule is feasible and safe; we continue to accrue. Dose-limiting heme toxicity has not yet been reached, yet dose intensity (2.8 mg/m2/wk) exceeds that achieved using the recommended Phase II 1.5 mg/m2/d x5 schedule (1.9 mg/m2/wk). Once an MTD is reached, Phase III trials comparing this schedule to the daily x5 bolus schedule will be warranted. (C) American Society of Clinical Oncology 1997

BACKGROUND: Although doxorubicin is an anticancer agent with a wide spectrum of activity, therapy with this anthracycline must often be discontinued at a time of benefit to the patient because of the drug's cumulative cardiotoxicity. ICRF-187 (ADR-529, dexrazoxane) is a bisdioxopiperazine compound that protects against cardiac toxicity induced by doxorubicin. PURPOSE: Our objectives in this study were to determine the maximum tolerated dose of ADR-529 (which uses a different vehicle than ICRF-187) when given with a fixed doxorubicin dose and to determine whether ADR-529 alters doxorubicin pharmacokinetics. METHODS: Twenty-five patients were treated with doxorubicin (60 mg/m2) preceded by administration of ADR-529 in escalating dosages (i.e., 60, 300, 600, 750, and 900 mg/m2) to groups of three to nine patients. ADR-529 was administered over a 15-minute period beginning 30 minutes before doxorubicin treatment; the protocol was repeated every 3 weeks. Blood was sampled frequently for drug levels, which were determined by high-pressure liquid chromatography with fluorescence (doxorubicin) and electrochemical detection (ADR-529). RESULTS: Dose-limiting neutropenia occurred in four of six previously treated patients at an ADR-529 dose of 600 mg/m2; the dose ratio of ADR-529 to doxorubicin was 10:1. For three additional patients with better Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status and a maximum of one prior chemotherapy regimen, 600 mg/m2 was tolerated, but grade 3 or 4 neutropenia occurred in four of six patients who received an ADR-529 dose of 900 mg/m2 and in three of four patients at a dose of 750 mg/m2. Doxorubicin's estimated terminal half-life was 39.5 +/- 18.3 (mean +/- SD) hours; the area under the curve for plasma concentration of drug x time (AUC) was 1.74 +/- 0.40 (micrograms/microL) x hour. Total-body clearance was 598 +/- 142 microL/m2 per minute (N = 20), and it did not vary with ADR-529 dose. Estimated distribution and elimination phase half-lives for plasma ADR-529 were 0.46 +/- 0.30 hours and 4.16 +/- 2.94 hours, respectively. Total-body clearance was 111 +/- 87 microL/m2 per minute (N = 18); AUC was linear (r2 = .92), and the clearance rate was constant (r2 = .18) from 60 to 900 mg/m2. CONCLUSIONS: Myelotoxicity was dose limiting for ADR-529 at 600-750 mg/m2 when given with a fixed dose of doxorubicin at 60 mg/m2 (dose ratios of ADR-529 to doxorubicin ranged from 10:1 to 12.5:1). When used in combination, ADR-529 did not perturb doxorubicin's distribution, metabolism, or excretion; therefore, other mechanisms of cardioprotection must be involved. IMPLICATIONS: We recommend that an ADR-529 dose of 600 mg/m2 be given with single-agent doxorubicin at a dose of 60 mg/m2 in future studies

We conducted a phase I/II trial of intraperitoneal (IP) carboplatin in 27 patients with advanced gynecologic malignancies. This was based on the known activity of carboplatin in ovarian cancer and pharmacologic measurements that predict a favorable ratio of IP to plasma drug exposure when carboplatin is administered by the IP route. All patients had extensive prior therapy with cisplatin (mean dose, 554 mg/m2). Starting dose was 200 mg/m2, which was escalated to 500 mg/m2. Patients with compromised renal function (creatinine clearance 30 to 60 mL/min) had slower escalations than patients with creatinine clearances greater than 60 mL/min. Myelosuppression, especially thrombocytopenia, was the dose-limiting toxicity. In pretreated patients, we recommend a starting dose of 400 mg/m2. Patients with creatinine clearances of 30 to 60 mL/min should start at the lower dose of 200 mg/m2. This is in general agreement with the results of other trials of IP carboplatin. Measurements of IP carboplatin in preclinical studies predict less tissue penetration by carboplatin than the parent compound cisplatin. Nevertheless, in our series of heavily pretreated patients receiving IP carboplatin, eight patients remained free of disease progression for more than 2 years. Further trials of IP carboplatin are indicated

PURPOSE: To test potential protection by ICRF-187 against cumulative doxorubicin-dose-related cardiac toxicity, we conducted a randomized clinical trial in 150 women with advanced breast cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients received fluorouracil (5FU) 500 mg/m2, doxorubicin 50 mg/m2, and cyclophosphamide 500 mg/m2 every 21 days intravenously (IV) (control regimen, 74 patients), or the same regimen preceded by ICRF-187 1,000 mg/m2 IV (experimental regimen, 76 patients). RESULTS: We previously reported that ICRF-187 in this dose and schedule provides cardiac protection and does not substantially alter the noncardiac toxicity or antitumor efficacy of the control regimen. In this updated analysis of the entire patient cohort, we provide additional support for these findings and demonstrate that patients in the ICRF-187 group received more cycles (median, 11) and higher cumulative doses (median, 500 mg/m2) of doxorubicin than patients in the control group (median, nine cycles, P less than .01; and 441 mg/m2, P less than .05). Twenty-six patients in the ICRF-187 group received doxorubicin doses of at least 700 mg/m2, and among them, 11 patients received 1,000 mg/m2 or more. Only three patients in the control group received doxorubicin doses of 700 mg/m2; the maximum dose administered to one patient in this group was 950 mg/m2. ICRF-187 cardiac protection was demonstrated by difference in incidence of clinical congestive heart failure (CHF; two patients in the ICRF-187 group v 20 in the control group; P less than .0001) and by differences in resting left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) determined by multigated radionuclide (MUGA) scan from baselines and that required patient removal from study (five patients in the ICRF-187 group had a decrease in LVEF to less than 0.45 or a decrease from the baseline LVEF of 0.20 or more v 32 in the control group; P less than .000001). Among the 30 patients who had an assessable endomyocardial biopsy at cumulative doxorubicin 450 mg/m2, none of 16 in the ICRF-187 group and six of 14 in the control group had a score of 2 (P less than .05). ICRF-187 cardiac protection was observed in patients with and without prior chest-wall radiation or other risk factors for developing doxorubicin cardiac toxicity. CONCLUSION: By protecting against cumulative doxorubicin-induced cardiac toxicity, ICRF-187 permits significantly greater doses of doxorubicin to be administered to patients with greater safety

A group of 16 patients with advanced malignancy were entered on a phase I trial of escalating doses of doxorubicin with ICRF-187 for cardioprotection and granulocyte/macrophage-colony-stimulating factor (GMCSF) for bone marrow protection. Patients received intravenous ICRF-187 (dose ratio 20:1 ICRF-187:doxorubicin) 30 min prior to doxorubicin. GMCSF at a dose of 15 micrograms kg-1 day-1 was self-administered subcutaneously on days 3-14 of the cycle. Doxorubicin was administered every 21 days. Substantial hematological and non-hematological toxicity was seen. Fever, malaise, and pulmonary symptoms, thought to be due to GMCSF, were not eliminated by reduction in the GMCSF dose to 10 or 5 micrograms kg-1 day-1. Severe hematological toxicity was seen despite GMCSF administration and it was not possible to escalate the doxorubicin dose above 72 mg/m2 with this combination. Dose escalation of doxorubicin may be more feasible with the use of other growth factors or growth factor combinations

Melanoma antigen vaccines are a conceptually attractive approach to prevent or delay disease recurrence in patients with surgically resected malignant melanoma. However, the immunogenicity of current vaccines is relatively low. Cyclophosphamide, when given in low doses prior to antigen exposure, is an immunomodulator which has been shown to enhance both humoral and cellular antitumor responses in animals and humans. We conducted a prospective, randomized, clinical trial to study whether pretreatment with cyclophosphamide augments the immunogenicity of a polyvalent, allogeneic, melanoma antigen vaccine in patients with melanoma and low tumor burden. Forty-five patients with resected stage II melanoma (regional metastases) were randomly allocated to treatment with melanoma vaccine or melanoma vaccine plus cyclophosphamide. All patients received the same dose and schedule of vaccine immunizations; those randomized to cyclophosphamide received 300 mg/m2 i.v. 3 days prior to each vaccine immunization. Cellular immune responses were evaluated by delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) skin reactivity to a test dose of vaccine at baseline (prior to treatment) and following the fourth immunization. Humoral immune responses were measured by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and autoradiographic analysis of indirect immunoprecipitates of patients' sera at the same time points. Twenty-four patients were randomized to cyclophosphamide pretreatment and 21 to vaccine alone; 22 and 18 patients were evaluable in each group, respectively. Differences were statistically nonsignificant with respect to either cellular (DTH) or humoral (antibody) responses between the two groups. DTH responses were induced in 16 of 22 (73%) and 15 of 18 (83%) patients treated with cyclophosphamide plus vaccine and vaccine alone, respectively. The mean posttreatment augmentation in DTH response in the cyclophosphamide group was 9.5 mm, compared with 9.9 mm in the vaccine-only group. Eight of 12 (66%) cyclophosphamide-pretreated patients and 9 of 12 (75%) vaccine-only patients produced increased titers of antimelanoma antibodies following treatment. No differences were observed between the groups in disease-free or overall survival. In summary, low-dose cyclophosphamide pretreatment failed to augment the immunogenicity of a polyvalent, allogeneic, melanoma vaccine in patients with completely resected early-stage melanoma