Incidence of Ophthalmic Disorders in Patients Treated with the Antineoplastic Agent S-1

S-1 is an oral antineoplastic agent containing tegafur, gimeracil, and oteracil potassium. Recently, ophthalmic disorders, particularly epiphora, have been reported. We retrospectively investigated the incidence of ophthalmic disorders in patients treated with a regimen containing S-1 at our institution. Ophthalmic disorders were noted in 28 of 261 patients(10.7%). These included epiphora(17 cases), eye discharge(10 cases), conjunctivitis(6cases ), blurred vision(3 cases), and eye discomfort(2 cases), as well as eye pain, pruritus, dry eye, hordeolum, and visual loss(1 case each). The median time from starting treatment to appearance of the condition was 3.0(interquartile range 1.5-4.5)months and the median cumulative S-1 dose was 4.2(interquartile range 2.2-9.5)g. More men than women developed ophthalmic disorders on S-1. The median total dose and duration of treatment were higher in those developed ophthalmic disorders than in those who did not (12.4 g vs 6.3g and 8.6 months vs 4.4 months). Epiphora was the most common of a number of ophthalmic disorders seen in our patients treated with S-1. Patients and physicians should be fully informed of the potential association between S-1 and ophthalmic disorders, and patients receiving this treatment need to be carefully monitored.