M. Markman

Second-line platinum therapy in patients with ovarian cancer previously treated with cisplatin.

In an effort to critically define the incidence and clinical characteristics of secondary responses to cisplatin-based therapy in patients with ovarian cancer previously treated with a cisplatin-based program, a retrospective review was undertaken of patients at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center who received greater than or equal to two cisplatin/carboplatin-based programs. Eighty-two patients were identified who met the entry criteria of having had a cisplatin-free interval (CFI) of more than 4 months between the completion of their first regimen and the institution of a second cisplatin/carboplatin program. Of the 72 assessable patients (10 had no measurable disease, and a laparotomy was not performed to assess response), 31 (43%) responded, including 10 surgically defined complete responses (S-CRs). The overall response rates (and S-CR rate), based on duration of CFI, were 5 to 12 months, 27% (5%); 13 to 24 months, 33% (11%); and more than 24 months, 59% (22%). Twenty-nine patients (35%) received noncisplatin/carboplatin-containing treatments between the cisplatin programs. Patients without any treatment for more than 24 months from the completion of their initial therapy experienced a 77% (17 of 22) response rate and a 32% (seven of 22) S-CR rate. In conclusion, secondary responses to cisplatin/carboplatin-based treatment are common in patients with ovarian cancer who have previously responded to the agents and increase in frequency with greater distance from the initial therapy.

Phase I trial of intraperitoneal taxol: a Gynecoloic Oncology Group study.

PURPOSEnTo evaluate the safety and pharmacology of the intraperitoneal (IP) administration of the antineoplastic agent taxol.nnnPATIENTS AND METHODSnTwenty-five pretreated patients who were entered onto a phase I clinical trial; 24 had advanced ovarian cancer. Patients were treated with taxol administered IP in 2 L of normal saline every 3 to 4 weeks. The starting dose was 25 mg/m2. There were no intrapatient dose escalations.nnnRESULTSnThe dose-limiting toxicity was the development of severe abdominal pain at taxol doses more than 175 mg/m2. Moderate leukopenia (WBC count less than 2,000/mm3) was observed at IP doses of greater than or equal to 175 mg/m2. The exposure of the peritoneal cavity (peak levels and area under the time-versus-concentration curve [AUC]) to taxol after IP delivery exceeded that of the plasma by approximately 1,000-fold. However, concentrations of the agent previously shown to produce cytotoxicity in experimental systems were demonstrated in the systemic compartment after regional delivery, which was considered important. Significant concentrations of taxol persisted within the peritoneal cavity for more than 24 to 48 hours after a single IP installation. Several antitumor responses, which included control of platinum-refractory ascites, were documented.nnnCONCLUSIONnTaxol can be delivered by the IP route with both an acceptable toxicity profile and a major pharmacokinetic advantage for cavity exposure.

Responses to second-line cisplatin-based intraperitoneal therapy in ovarian cancer: influence of a prior response to intravenous cisplatin.

Phase II trials of second-line intraperitoneal (IP) cisplatin-based therapy in patients with ovarian cancer have demonstrated the ability of this approach to produce objective antitumor responses, including surgically defined complete responses (CRs), in individuals with persistent small-volume disease after front-line cisplatin-based intravenous (IV) treatment. To examine the influence of a prior response to systemic cisplatin on the activity of second-line IP cisplatin, we retrospectively analyzed two phase II trials of cisplatin-based IP therapy in persistent/recurrent ovarian cancer conducted at our institution. Of the 89 assessable patients on the two trials, 52 (58%) had previously responded to IV cisplatin. The overall response and CR rates to second-line IP cisplatin-based therapy in this previously responding population were 56% and 33%, respectively, compared with overall response and CR rates in the 37 nonresponders to IV cisplatin of 11% and 3%, respectively (P less than .001; chi 2, 1 df). In the 36 patients responding to systemic cisplatin and whose largest tumor mass measured less than 1 cm at IP cisplatin initiation, a 42% CR rate was observed, compared with a 7% CR rate in the 14 patients with the same bulk of disease who had previously failed to respond to systemic cisplatin (P less than .025). We conclude that a prior response to systemic cisplatin strongly influences the antineoplastic activity of second-line IP cisplatin in ovarian cancer.

Intraperitoneal cisplatin and etoposide in the treatment of refractory/recurrent ovarian carcinoma.

To determine the efficacy of a 6-month course of combination intraperitoneal (IP) chemotherapy with cisplatin and etoposide in patients with refractory or recurrent advanced ovarian carcinoma, 67 patients were entered into this prospective, nonrandomized, single-institution trial. Cisplatin at 100 mg/m2 and etoposide at 200 mg/m2 were administered IP on day 1 every month for 6 months. Exploratory laparotomy was performed before protocol entry and was planned after the completion of 6 months of IP therapy to surgically document response. All patients had received prior intravenous (IV) chemotherapy with a cisplatin-based regimen. At protocol entry, 18 (27%) patients had surgically defined residual tumor (maximal tumor diameter) greater than 2.0 cm, 17 (25%) patients greater than 0.5 cm - less than or equal to 2.0 cm, and 32 (48%) patients less than or equal to 0.5 cm. Sixteen patients (24%) who had experienced a treatment-free interval of more than 1 year prior to study entry were considered as having recurrent disease and the remaining 51 (76%) patients were considered as having refractory disease. Toxicity was tolerable: four patients (6%) had nadir fever, three (4%) had culture-documented bacterial peritonitis, five (7%) had IP catheter-related complications, and 27 (40%) had an increase in serum creatinine greater than 1.5 mg/dL. Among the 57 patients who are fully evaluable for response, the overall surgically defined response rate, complete (CR), and partial response (PR), was 40% (23/57), and the CR rate was 21% (12/57). Among the patients with recurrent disease, eight of 13 (62%) responded, with responses seen among all categories of residual disease. Among the patients with refractory disease, 15 of 44 (34%) had surgically documented responses. However, responses were more frequent in patients with residual disease less than 0.5 cm; 11 of 20 (55%) versus four of 24 (17%) with residual greater than 0.5 cm, P = .019 (chi 2, one degree of freedom, Yates correction). The duration of the CRs ranges from 4 to 18+ months. Longer follow-up is needed to determine if there is any impact on survival.

Impact on survival of surgically defined favorable responses to salvage intraperitoneal chemotherapy in small-volume residual ovarian cancer.

PURPOSEnTo evaluate the impact on survival of the attainment of surgically defined favorable responses (S-R) to salvage intraperitoneal (IP) chemotherapy after initial systemic cytotoxic drug delivery.nnnPATIENTS AND METHODSnWe examined the survival of patients who were treated on one of three phase II IP trials that were conducted at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. A total of 58 patients whose largest residual tumor masses measured less than or equal to 0.5 cm in maximum diameter at the initiation of this salvage therapy were assessable for response, 28 of whom (48%) demonstrated a S-R, which included 19 (33%) who achieved a surgically defined complete response (S-CR).nnnRESULTSnWith a median follow-up of 43+ months (range, 33+ to 58+ months) from the initiation of IP therapy, 12 of 19 (63%) have recurred. The median duration of S-CR for the 10 patients with microscopic residual disease was 32 months compared with 15 months for the nine patients with macroscopic residual disease (largest tumor mass less than or equal to 0.5 cm; P greater than .1). For patients with microscopic residual disease who experienced a S-CR (n = 10) after salvage IP therapy, the median overall survival from the initiation of therapy has not been reached, but will exceed 4 years compared with a 25-month median survival for the nonresponding patients (n = 13; P = .004). The median survival for the 18 patients with small-volume macroscopic disease who responded to therapy was 40 months compared with 19 months for the nonresponders (P = .009).nnnCONCLUSIONnAlthough the results of this evaluation are encouraging and suggest that the attainment of a S-R, particularly a S-CR, after IP chemotherapy may result in a clinically meaningful favorable impact on survival, a randomized controlled trial will be required to address definitively this important issue.

Phase II trial of intraperitoneal mitoxantrone in the management of refractory ovarian cancer.

To define both the toxicity and efficacy of intraperitoneal mitoxantrone in the treatment of refractory ovarian carcinoma, 31 patients were entered onto a phase II trial of this agent delivered in a 2 L treatment volume on a monthly basis. Due to excessive local pain at the initial dose level (30 mg/m2), the amount of drug delivered with each treatment course was reduced to 20 mg/m2. Despite this reduction, 74% of patients required narcotic analgesia during treatment. In addition, there were four episodes of bowel obstruction (one requiring surgical intervention) during therapy, and two patients developed bowel obstruction and intraabdominal abscesses following the completion of treatment. Six of 18 evaluable patients (33%) whose largest tumor diameter was less than or equal to 1 cm at protocol initiation experienced surgically documented responses, compared with one of 11 patients (9%) whose largest tumor was greater than 1 cm in diameter. If the two patients exhibiting what we called a mixed response to treatment are included, seven of 21 patients previously treated with intraperitoneal cisplatin responded to this treatment program, including four patients who had failed to respond to intraperitoneal cisplatin. No responding patient has demonstrated clinical evidence of relapse with a median follow-up of 7 months (range, 3+ to 13+ months) from response laparotomy. Intraperitoneal mitoxantrone is an active treatment program in patients with small-volume refractory ovarian carcinoma, but local toxicity can be severe. Due to the toxicity encountered with this specific program, its use cannot be recommended for standard clinical practice. However, in view of the activity observed in refractory ovarian carcinoma, including responses in patients who had previously failed intraperitoneal cisplatin, it is important to continue to explore alternative therapeutic regimens using intraperitoneal mitoxantrone to reduce local toxicity while maintaining or improving efficacy.

A phase I trial of intraperitoneal recombinant gamma-interferon in advanced ovarian carcinoma.

The interferons are a class of biological agents that have demonstrated antineoplastic activity in a variety of tumors both in vitro and in vivo. Previous reports have suggested that interferons can be safely administered by the intraperitoneal (IP) route with a pharmacokinetic advantage for peritoneal cavity exposure compared with the systemic circulation and with objective antitumor activity being demonstrated. On the basis of these reports and laboratory data suggesting activity for recombinant gamma-interferon (r-GIFN) against several malignant cell lines, we treated 27 refractory ovarian carcinoma patients, including six with very-small-volume residual disease, with this agent delivered by the IP route. While r-GIFN was found to be remarkably well tolerated, with a 150- to 200-fold pharmacokinetic advantage for peak levels achieved in the peritoneal cavity compared with the plasma, no objective responses were observed. Despite the lack of demonstrated activity for single-agent IP-administered r-GIFN in this clinical setting, there remains considerable interest in this agent when delivered by the IP route because of in vitro data suggesting concentration-dependent synergy between r-GIFN and other biological agents.

Intraperitoneal cisplatin and cytarabine in the treatment of refractory or recurrent ovarian carcinoma.

Preclinical evaluation has suggested impressive concentration-dependent cytotoxic synergy between cisplatin and cytarabine in ovarian carcinoma. To further evaluate the clinical relevance of these observations, 39 patients with refractory or recurrent ovarian carcinoma were entered onto a phase II trial of intraperitoneal (IP) cisplatin (100 to 105 mg/m2 per course) plus cytarabine (600 to 900 mg per course). Treatment was administered over 2 or 3 days for a maximum of five monthly courses, followed by surgical reevaluation in patients without clinical evidence of disease. The 3-day regimen was discontinued secondary to the development of severe thrombocytopenia (five of 12 courses platelets decreased to less than 50,000/mm3). Additional toxicities included abdominal pain (moderate to severe at some time during therapy in 46% of patients), fever without evidence of infection (44%), and bacterial peritonitis (10%). Three patients declined surgical reassessment. Fourteen of 36 (39%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 23% to 55%) assessable patients demonstrated surgically defined responses, including 12 of 23 (52%; 95% CI, 32% to 72%) patients with tumor nodules less than 1 cm in diameter and only two of 13 (15%; 95% CI, 0% to 34%) patients with any lesion greater than 1 cm. There were seven (30%; 95% CI, 11% to 49%) surgically defined complete responses (CRs) in patients with less than 1 cm disease and none in patients with larger tumor nodules. IP cisplatin/cytarabine results in a high surgically defined response rate in patients with minimal residual ovarian carcinoma, but activity is low in patients with bulky intraabdominal disease.

Phase II trial of weekly or biweekly intraperitoneal mitoxantrone in epithelial ovarian cancer

Previous experimental and clinical evaluation has suggested that ovarian cancer is sensitive to the cytotoxic effects of mitoxantrone at concentrations achievable within the peritoneal cavity after intraperitoneal (IP) administration. Unfortunately, the use of the drug delivered IP at high doses (20 mg/m2 in 2 L normal saline [NS]) on a monthly schedule is compromised by severe local effects secondary to the irritant properties of the drug. To reduce toxicity and take advantage of minimal systemic drug exposure following IP administration, we treated 28 patients with a lower drug concentration of mitoxantrone (10 mg/m2 in 2 L NS), but on a weekly or every other week schedule (total, 12 courses). Compared with the monthly program, this regimen caused less pain, allowed for a higher cumulative dose of mitoxantrone to be delivered, and resulted in less serious treatment-related morbidity. Four of 13 assessable patients (31%) whose largest tumor was less than or equal to 1 cm in diameter demonstrated a surgically defined response. All responding patients had failed previously or exhibited a minimal response to cisplatin. Despite the improved toxicity profile of this regimen, the overall response rate was similar to the monthly program, probably secondary to inadequate IP drug distribution in many patients. Future investigative efforts using IP mitoxantrone as therapy for ovarian cancer might focus on developing methods to improve drug delivery to all sites of tumor within the peritoneal cavity (eg, intraoperative therapy, increased treatment volumes, and antiinflammatory agents to reduce adhesion formation).

Phase I trial of concurrent intraperitoneal and continuous intravenous infusion of fluorouracil in patients with refractory cancer.

In an effort to maximize both local-regional and systemic drug exposure to tumor in the peritoneal cavity, a phase I study was conducted that examined the simultaneous daily intraperitoneal (IP) and continuous intravenous infusion (CVI) of fluorouracil (5-FU) to 32 patients with refractory cancer. IP 5-FU administered at 1,000 mg/d with concurrent 5-FU by CVI at 1,000 mg/m2/d for four consecutive days was well tolerated. One patient with a primary gastrointestinal (GI) malignancy with minimal volume disease experienced a surgically defined complete remission. In theory, this regimen may demonstrate clinical utility as an adjuvant treatment of certain GI malignancies. Future studies are planned in this clinical setting.