Bleomycin (NSC-125066) followed by cyclophosphamide (NSC-26271), vincristine (NSC-67574), methotrexate (NSC-740), and 5-fllorouracil (NSC-19893) for non-oat cell bronchogenic carcinoma

Abstract

The in vivo observation that bleomycin may be used as a synchronizing agent provides the basis for testing 4 days of continuous bleomycin infusion followed by 5 days of intensive chemotherapy with cyclophosphamide, vincristine, methotrexate, and 5-fluorouracil. Thirty-eight patients with extensive non-oat cell bronchogenic carcinoma (adenocarcinoma[17 patients], squamous cell carcinoma[14 patients], and poorly differentiated carcinoma [seven patients]) were registered for chemotherapy. There were 11 patients with 50% regression of all measurable lesions and four with improved but poorly measurable radiographic lesions, providing a crude response rate of 39% (15 of 38 patients). An overall survival median of 19 weeks compares favorably with Veterans' Administration Lung Cancer Study Group control data, but was not substantially better than our own historical controls (P = 0.15). The median survival for responders was 36 weeks compared to 16 weeks for historical controls (P = 0.001) and 12 weeks for nonresponders (P less than 0.001).