Induction chemotherapy with docetaxel, cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil for tongue cancer

Induction chemotherapy consisting of one cycle of docetaxel, cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) was evaluated for its primary effects on squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue. The patients were five men and one woman, 50 to 67 (mean 57.8) years of age. Clinical staging of the tongue cancers showed two patients with stage III and four with stage IV disease. All patients underwent one cycle of intravenous chemotherapy with docetaxel (60 mg/m2, on day 1), cisplatin (10 mg/m2, from days 1 to 5) and 5-FU (500 mg/body, from days 1 to 5) before surgical operation. The overall response rate was 83.3% (five PRs and one NC), with two cases with grade II A in the Ohboshi & Shimosato classification and four with grade II B. The main side effect was severe neutropenia, which was effectively managed with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF). In conclusion, induction chemotherapy with docetaxel, cisplatin and 5-FU for tongue cancer was tolerated well by all the patients and showed an excellent response rate in spite of only one cycle of administration.