Chemoradiotherapy with capecitabine for locally advanced anal carcinoma: an alternative treatment option
Menée à partir de données portant sur 105 patients atteints d'un carcinome épidermoïde de l'anus de stade localement avancé, cette étude évalue, du point de vue du taux de réponse clinique complète, du contrôle locorégional et de la survie globale à 3 ans, l'intérêt de la capécitabine comme alternative au fluorouracile dans le cadre d'une chimioradiothérapie
Background : Capecitabine is an established treatment alternative to intravenous 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) for patients with rectal cancer receiving chemoradiotherapy. Its place in the treatment of locally advanced anal carcinoma (AC), however, remains undetermined. We investigated whether capecitabine is as effective as 5-FU in the treatment of patients with locally advanced AC. Methods : One hundred and five patients with squamous cell AC stage T2-4 (T2>4 cm), N0-1, M0 or T1-4, N2-3, M0, were included in this retrospective study. Forty-seven patients were treated with continuous 5-FU (750 mg m−2) on days 1–5 and 29–33, mitomycin C (MMC, 10 mg m−2) on day 1, and radiotherapy; 58 patients were treated with capecitabine (825 mg m−2 b.i.d. on weekdays), MMC (10 mg m−2) on day 1, and radiotherapy. The primary end points of the study were: clinical complete response rate, locoregional control (LRC) and overall survival (OS). Secondary end points were: colostomy-free survival (CFS), toxicity and associations of genetic polymorphisms (GSTT1, GSTM1, GSTP1 and TYMS) with outcome and toxicity. Results : Clinical complete response was achieved in 41/46 patients (89.1%) with 5-FU and in 52/58 patients (89.7%) with capecitabine. Three-year LRC was 76% and 79% (P=0.690, log-rank test), 3-year OS was 78% and 86% (P=0.364, log-rank test) and CFS was 65% and 79% (P=0.115, log-rank test) for 5-FU and capecitabine, respectively. GSTT1 and TYMS genotypes were associated with severe (grade 3–4) toxicity. Conclusions : Capecitabine combined with MMC and radiotherapy was equally effective as 5-FU-based chemoradiotherapy. This study shows that capecitabine can be used as an acceptable alternative to 5-FU for the treatment of AC.