Safety and feasibility of S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer in elderly patients

The safety and feasibility of administering S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer has not yet been fully evaluated in elderly patients. This retrospective study selected patients who underwent curative surgery for pancreatic cancer, were diagnosed with stage II disease or lower or stage III disease with combined resection of the celiac artery, and received adjuvant S-1 at our institution. The patients were categorized into two groups: non-elderly patients (< 70 years of age: group A) and elderly patients (> 70 years of age: group B). The toxicity and S-1 continuation rates were compared between the two groups. A total of 76 patients were evaluated in the present study. There were no grade 4 toxicities. The incidences of grade 3 hematological and non-hematological toxicities were < 5 % in both groups, and the differences were not significantly different. The continuation rate at 6 months was 60.5 % in group A and 72.7 % in group B, which was also not significantly different. These results suggest that S-1 adjuvant chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer is safe and feasible, regardless of the age of the patient, especially for elderly patients who may be candidates for clinical trials.