Concurrent cisplatin/5-fluorouracil chemotherapy and radiotherapy for head and neck cancer. Acute reaction and local response

Ten patients with head and neck cancer were entered into a pilot study of concurrent cisplatin (70 mg/m2 bolus injection) /5-fluorouracil (700 mg/m2 continuous infusion for 5 days) and radiotherapy. At the end of radiotherapy, CR was obtained in 3 and PR in 6. However, all patients developed level 4 to 5 acute mucosal reaction at the dose of 30 to 40 Gy, and 5 patients had undergone surgical resection thereafter. Our retrospective analysis revealed that severe acute mucositis is inevitable in this type of concurrent regimen. It was considered that this must be overcome to plan future study. (author)