[A study on preoperative administration of doxifluridine in carcinoma of the colon and rectum]

The usefulness of preoperative administration of Doxifluridine (5'-DFUR) for treating carcinoma of the colon and rectum was studied through a determination of 5-FU concentration in carcinoma, normal intestine, serum and lymph nodes concerned. 1,200 mg/day of 5'-DFUR was administrated orally to 16 patients with carcinoma of the colon and rectum over four days before surgery, and the specimens obtained by resecting the carcinoma were subjected to the mass spectrometry using a gas chromatography to determine 5-FU concentrations. The time needed for collection of the specimen from the final administration of 5'-DFUR was 3.0 to 20.5 hours (10.7 +/- 6.6 hrs). 5-FU concentrations were as follows: 75.8 +/- 61.2 ng/g in the carcinoma, 39.9 +/- 63.5 ng/g in the normal intestine and 26.8 +/- 52.4 ng/g in the lymph nodes concerned, which were significantly high as compared to serum level of 2.3 +/- 4.9 ng/ml (p less than 0.05). Further, a high level of 90.1 +/- 29.3 ng/g (n = 6) of the carcinoma was sustained even at 12 hours or more since final administration of 5'-DFUR. In view of histological patterns, the levels were 139.5 +/- 69.5 ng/g (n = 5) in well differentiated carcinoma and 46.9 +/- 27.4 ng/g (n = 11) in moderately differentiated carcinoma, the level being significantly high in the former (p less than 0.05). A histologic therapeutical effect was shown in one out of 16 cases, with the improvement that remained the score to grade 1. This was deemed due to the small dosage and a short duration of 5'-DFUR.