INTRODUCTION:

Frequent administration of low doses of cytotoxic drugs (metronomic chemotherapy) has been suggested to suppress tumour growth possibly by inhibiting angiogenesis. We evaluated a metronomic regimen of oral vinorelbine in pre-treated patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

METHODS:

Forty-six pre-treated NSCLC patients received oral vinorelbine at a fixed dose of 50 mg three times a week.

RESULTS:

Treatment was administered as second-line in 12 (26·1%) patients and as third- or further-line in 34 (73·9%). Grade 3-4 neutropenia was observed in 23·9% and febrile neutropenia in 10·9%. Grade 3 fatigue was the most common severe non-hematologic toxicity (10·9%). Response rate was 10·9%; 19·6% achieved disease stabilization. Median tumour progression (TTP) was 2·2 months, median overall survival 9·4 months and the 1-year survival rate was 30·1%.

CONCLUSION:

The administration of metronomic oral vinorelbine is feasible and results in acceptable clinical efficacy associated with manageable toxicity in a population consisting mostly of heavily pre-treated NSCLC patients.

Kontopodis E, Hatzidaki D, Varthalitis I, Kentepozidis N, Giassas S, Pantazopoulos N, Vardakis N, Rovithi M, Georgoulias V, Agelaki S.