Combination chemotherapy with paclitaxel and oxaliplatin as first-line treatment in patients with advanced gastric cancer

Purpose This study is a retrospective analysis evaluating the efficacy and toxicity of combination chemotherapy with Paclitaxel (PTX) and Oxaliplatin (OXA) as first-line treatment for patients with advanced gastric cancer (AGC). Methods One hundred and seven patients with locally advanced or metastatic gastric adenocarcinoma received intravenous infusions of PTX at 135 mg/m 2 and OXA at 85 mg/m 2 on day 1 every 14 days. Results Among 107 patients enrolled, 9 patients could not be evaluated for a response because of the absence of any measurable lesions. Assessment of the response of 98 patients was made. The overall objective response rate was 42.9% (95% CI 32.9–52.8%), with two complete responses and 40 partial responses. The disease control was 79.6% (95% CI 71.5–87.7%). With 29 months of the median time of follow-up, the median progression-free survival was 5.8 months (95% CI 4.30–7.30 months) and the median overall survival was 11.5 months (95% CI 9.08–13.9 months). The 1-year survival rate was 48.0%. The most common grades 3 and 4 toxicities included neutropenia (32.7%), leucopenia (17.8%), fatigue (5.61%), and anemia (4.67%). Peripheral neuropathy occurred in 23.4% patients and grade 2 or higher peripheral neuropathy occurred in 12.1% of the patients. Conclusions Combination chemotherapy with PTX and OXA offers a new, effective and safe regimen for patients with advanced gastric cancer.