Comparison of CAF versus CMFP in metastatic breast cancer: analysis of prognostic factors

Abstract

One hundred fifty-five eligible women with metastatic breast cancer were randomly allocated to receive monthly cycles of either CMFP (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, 5-fluorouracil, prednisone) or CAF (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, 5-fluorouracil), and 12 patients were studied to evaluate the effects of additional Corynebacterium parvum immunotherapy. Overall response rates of 53% were seen with CMFP and CAF. CAF was associated with significantly more complete responses than CMFP (17% v 5%). However, CAF therapy was administered for eight months and CMFP for six months. Only 13% of the CAF patients had a complete response during the first six months of chemotherapy, and this was not significantly different from the complete response rate on CMFP. The median response durations (CMFP, 6.3 months; CAF, 11.0 months), times to treatment failure (CMFP, 5.7 months; CAF, 7.8 months), and survival times (CMFP, 15.8 months; CAF, 18.6 months) were not statistically different. Other investigators who have compared CAF to CMF-containing regimens have reported a large advantage in CAF therapy among patients with "good risk" sites of metastases (local-regional recurrence, bone, lung nodules). Such a finding was not confirmed by our study: in multivariate analyses the groups associated with an advantage for CAF tended to have a poorer prognosis than the groups associated with an advantage for CMFP. There was significantly more nausea and vomiting after CAF treatment, and CMFP treatment was associated with significantly more edema, Cushingoid features, fever, and eye symptoms.