Purpose: To assess the antitumor efficacy and safety of 2 treatment modalities: intraperitoneal carboplatin combined with intravenous (IV) paclitaxel.
Patients and methods: Eligible patients were those with epithelial ovarian carcinoma or primary peritoneal carcinoma stages II to IV who underwent initial surgery and had a residual tumor size of 2 cm or larger. Patients received IV paclitaxel 175 mg/m followed by intraperitoneal carboplatin AUC6. The primary end point was a response. Secondary end points were toxicity, progression-free survival, and overall survival.
Results: Twenty-six patients were enrolled, and 24 patients were eligible for assessment. The response rate was 83.3% (95% CI, 62.6%-95.3%; ). The median progression-free survival was 25 months. The median overall survival had not been reached. Incidences of grade (G) 3/4 hematological toxicities were absolute neutrophil count, 96%; hemoglobin, 29%; and thrombocytopenia, 16%. Nonhematological toxicities included G2 liver function, 4%; G3 sensory neuropathy, 8%; and G3 myalgia and arthralgia, 4%.
Conclusions: Intraperitoneal administration of carboplatin combined with IV paclitaxel was well tolerated and showed satisfactory response in the patients with bulky residual tumor. Large-scale phase III trial comparing with IV carboplatin is warranted in this patient population.