Further evidence for the value of the chemosensitivity test in deciding appropriate chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer

Background: The chemosensitivity test using the MTT endpoint is useful in predicting chemosensitivity. Patients and Methods: One hundred twenty-eight patients with advanced gastric cancer were enrolled.in the study, in which mitomycin C (MMC), doxorubicin (DXR), 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), and cisplatin (DDP) were used Results: The corresponding efficacy rates were 12.5% for MMC, 6.3% for DXR, 5.4% for 5-FU and 13.4% for DDP. The overall predictive accuracy was 78% in the patients with measurable lesions. Among the patients without measurable lesions, 21 were treated with a curative operation, and 33 with a non-curative operation. In those patients undergoing curative surgery, the "adapted" group detected by MTT assay survived longer than "non-adapted" cases (p<0.05). Conclusions: The present study provides further evidence that the chemosensitivity test may be useful for evaluating appropriate chemotherapy for advanced gastric cancer.