Nedaplatin and irinotecan in patients with large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the lung.

BACKGROUND

No standard chemotherapy has been established for patients with large-cell neuroendocrine carcinoma (LCNEC).

METHODS

Patients with LCNEC of the lung were treated with nedaplatin (NP) at 50 mg/m(2) and irinotecan at 50 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8 every four weeks for four cycles.

RESULTS

Data for 18 of the LCNEC patients were retrospectively analyzed. All patients were male, with a performance status 0 or 1, and the median age was 68 (range 58-80) years. Nine patients received adjuvant chemotherapy after undergoing complete surgical resection. Fourteen patients were able to receive four cycles of nedaplatin and irinotecan. Grade 4 leukopenia and neutropenia occurred in 5.6% and 16.7%, respectively. Four patients experienced grade 3 non-hematologic toxicities, such as diarrhea, enterocolitis, duodenal perforation and myocardial infarction. There were no treatment-related deaths. Two patients achieved complete response and four achieved partial response, and the median survival time was 12.3 months for the nine patients with advanced disease.

CONCLUSIONS

Nedaplatin plus irinotecan is effective and safe for patients with LCNEC of the lung.