Efficacy of methotrexate/vinblastine/doxorubicin cisplatin combination in gemcitabine-pretreated patients with advanced urothelial cancer: a retrospective analysis

• Published in: Open access journal of urology 2010-01, Vol.2, p.193-199
• Main Authors: Karadimou, Alexandra, Lianos, Evangelos, Pectasides, Dimitrios, Dimopoulos, Meletios A, Bamias, Aristotle
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Original Research
• ISSN: 1179-1551; 1179-1551
• DOI: 10.2147/OAJU.S13122

Second-line treatment options in advanced urothelial cancer are limited. We investigated the efficacy of a methotrexate/vinblastine/doxorubicin/cisplatin (MVAC) combination after failure of gemcitabine/platinum chemotherapy. Twenty-five patients with advanced urothelial cancer, who received second-line MVAC after first-line gemcitabine/cisplatin (n = 9) or gemcitabine/carboplatin (n = 16), were included in this retrospective analysis. Twenty-two patients (88%) relapsed within 6 months after first-line treatment. Following MVAC, there were 5 (20%) objective responses. Median follow-up was 20.2 months. Median progression-free survival (PFS) was 3.8 months (95% CI: 2.3-5.2), and median overall survival (OS) was 9 months (95% CI: 6.6-11.4). Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 0.1 versus 2 was associated with longer PFS (5 months versus 3.3 months, P = 0.049). Response or stabilization of disease during second-line chemotherapy predicted for a significantly longer PFS and OS (7.4 versus 3.5, P = 0.005; 15.5 versus 7, P = 0.046). Second-line MVAC chemotherapy may result in prolonged survival in some patients with refractory disease. Further research in this field is necessary.