Randomized phase II study of irinotecan, leucovorin and 5-fluorouracil (ILF) versus cisplatin plus ILF (PILF) combination chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer

Background: Irinotecan, in combination with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) or cisplatin, has demonstrated efficacy against advanced gastric cancer (AGC). Patients and methods: Chemotherapy-naive AGC patients were randomly assigned to receive irinotecan 150 mg/m₂ on day 1, leucovorin 20 mg/m₂ and a 22-h infusion of 5-FU 1000 mg/m₂ on days 1 and 2 (ILF) or ILF plus cisplatin 30 mg/m₂ on day 2 (PILF). Treatment was repeated every 2 weeks. Results: Of 91 registered patients, 45 patients were treated with ILF and 45 with PILF. For both arms, 687 chemotherapy cycles were delivered (median = 7 for ILF and 8 for PILF). Both ILF and PILF were generally well tolerated and there was no relevant difference in the occurrence of overall grade 3/4 toxic effects between the two arms. Four patients died during treatment: one in the ILF and three in the PILF arm. The objective response rate was 42% for both arms. There was no significant difference in therapeutic efficacy between ILF and PILF with respect to progression-free survival (4.8 versus 6.2 months; P = 0.523) and overall survival (10.7 versus 10.5 months; P = 0.850). Conclusion: Both ILF and PILF are active as first-line chemotherapy for AGC. The addition of cisplatin, however, has no clear advantage over ILF.