A phase II study of carboplatin and paclitaxel in esophageal cancer

Background: This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of combination carboplatin and paclitaxel in patients with esophageal cancer. Materials and methods: Thirty-five patients were enrolled. Patients were treated with paclitaxel 200 mg/m(2) intravenously (i.v.) over 3 h and carboplatin i.v. at an AUC of 5 mg/h/ml. Thirty-three patients were assessable for toxicity and objective response. Results: A total of 166 treatment courses were administered with a median of five courses per patient. The objective response rate was 43% [90% confidence interval (CI) 0.3-0.58] by the intention-to-treat analysis. The median response duration was 2.8 months (90% Cl 2.1-5.4). The median survival time was 9 months (90% Cl 7-13.8) and the I-year survival rate was 43% (90% Cl 0.29-0.57). The major grade 3-4 toxicity observed was neutropenia, occurring in 17 patients (52%). There were no treatment-related deaths. Conclusions: The combination of carboplatin and paclitaxel is an moderately active and tolerable regimen in advanced esophageal cancer.