Continuous infusion cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil with bolus vinorelbine in the treatment of advanced nonsmall cell carcinoma of the lung

Thirty-three patients, with histologically proven advanced nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were treated at Institut Curie with a three-drug combination chemotherapy. The regimen consisted of cisplatin 25 mg/m2 per day continuous infusion (CI) and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) CI 600 mg/m2 on 5 consecutive days with 30 minutes infusion navelbine 25 mg/m2 on days 1 and 5 only. Cycles were repeated every 28 days. Response was evaluated after three cycles. One patient died of an ischemic cerebrovascular stroke after the third cycle. Thirty-two pts were evaluable. Partial response was achieved in 11/20 patients with stage III disease (55%) and in 7/12 patients with stage IV disease (58%). WHO grade 4 toxicities were leucopenia 31%, thrombocytopenia 4%, and mucositis 4%. The tolerance was acceptable. Median survival was 19 months for stage III and 9.5 months for stage IV. We conclude that the combination of 5-FU, navelbine, and cisplatin is an effective chemotherapy regimen for patients with advanced stage NSCLC.