Reuse of carboplatin and paclitaxel in patients with relapsed endometrial cancer--the British Columbia Cancer Agency experience

ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of reusing carboplatin and taxol in women with relapsed endometrial cancer.MethodsRetrospective analysis of our database of newly diagnosed high-risk patients with endometrial cancer treated with carboplatin–paclitaxel at diagnosis, with subsequent relapse for the period of 1995–2007.Results111 patients of 200 relapsed. They had either endometroid or papillary serous histologies. Strategies utilized upon first relapse were: no treatment (n = 33), surgery (n = 4), hormones (n = 8), irradiation (n = 14) and chemotherapy (n = 52). Carboplatin and paclitaxel was reused in 31 (60% of 52 retreated with chemotherapy or 29% of the total cohort of 111). There was no statistically significant difference in stage at diagnosis or grade at diagnosis between those retreated with chemotherapy or not or with carboplatin–paclitaxel versus another regimen. The patients retreated were a selected subgroup as only those with initial response or treated adjuvantly were offered carboplatin–paclitaxel. CR or PR were achieved in 8 (42%) patients with endometroid type cancer. In the papillary serous group 6 (50%) had CR or PR. Median PFS from first relapse was 8 months for endometroid and 9 months for papillary serous histology. OS was 15 months and 26 months respectively from first relapse.ConclusionCarboplatin–taxol regimen is an efficacious treatment. Due to the patient selection these outcomes reported are likely to be an overstatement of what could be achieved in practice.