• 8/25/2006
  • Iowa City, IA
  • staff
  • CancerConsultants.com

Researchers from Harvard University have reported that a regimen of induction chemotherapy followed by concomitant Taxotere (docetaxel) results in disease eradication in 70% of patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer. The details of this phase II study appeared in the July 15, 2006, issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics .

There have been several randomized and non-randomized clinical trials which suggest that the concomitant administration of platinum-based chemotherapy and radiotherapy is superior to radiotherapy alone for the treatment of patients with advanced head and neck cancer for local and regional control. Most, but not all, have also shown a survival advantage for combined treatment. More recently, Taxotere has emerged as a very effective agent for the treatment of head and neck cancer.

The current study was carried out by researchers at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

They treated 31 patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer with induction chemotherapy, concomitant Taxotere and radiation therapy and surgery for neck dissections when indicated. The induction regimens in this trial were Platinol® (cisplatin) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), Paraplatin® (carboplatin) and 5-FU or Taxotere, Platinol and 5-FU. All patients received Taxotere 4 times per week while receiving radiation therapy.
The complete response rate to induction chemotherapy was 20%, the complete response rate after Taxotere and radiation therapy was 70%. Nineteen patients had a neck dissection and 7 were positive for cancer. After all planned therapy 93% were considered to be disease-free. At the time of writing this article 70% of patients were alive and disease-free. Toxicities were considered manageable.

Comments: This appears to be a very effective strategy for locally advanced head and neck cancer. These data also confirm the utility of Taxotere for treatment of head and neck cancer.

Reference:
Tishler RB, Posner MR, Norris CM, et al. Concurrent weekly docetaxel and concomitant boost radiation therapy in the treatment of locally advanced squamous cell cancer of the head and neck. International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics . 2006;65:1036-1044.