Eight drugs in one day chemotherapy for brain tumors: experience in 107 children and rationale for preradiation chemotherapy

Abstract

The development of a new multidrug chemotherapy regimen for primary brain tumors was based upon the cellular heterogeneity within individual tumors, the Goldie-Coldman and Price-Goldie-Hill hypotheses, and known agonistic effects of certain drug combinations and sequences. Eight drugs (vincristine [VCR], hydroxyurea, procarbazine, CCNU, cisplatin, cytosine arabinoside [Ara-C] high-dose methylprednisolone, and either cyclophosphamide or dacarbazine) were administered within 12 hours in an attempt to minimize myelosuppression. Courses were repeated at 2- to 4-week intervals. The regimen was devised to include lipid and water soluble drugs, polar and nonpolar agents, phase-specific and cell-cycle independent agents, and antineoplastics with different mechanisms of action. More than 330 courses of the regimen were administered to 107 children with brain tumors whose tumor had recurred or had been incompletely resected at diagnosis. Tumor response according to protocol-specified criteria and independent review was evaluable in 78% of the patients. After just two cycles of chemotherapy and within a 4- to 6-week interval, 50% had an objective tumor response including 15.5% who had a complete response (CR). Nephrotoxicity and high-frequency hearing losses were noted after three to five courses of therapy in approximately half of the patients. Transfusions with red cells or platelets and use of antibiotics for fever and neutropenia were required in 10% to 25% of patients. The regimen appears satisfactory for preradiation chemotherapy in newly diagnosed patients with residual tumor after surgery, but it must be compared with standard therapeutic approaches in prospective controlled trials before its relative value can be established.