Clinical phase I-II study of cis-dichloro-diammineplatinum(II) given by continuous lv infusion

To determine the efficacy and toxicity of cis-dichlorodiammineplatinum(II) (DDP) by a continuous iv infusion (CIVI) schedule, 34 patients with a variety of solid tumors were studied. All patients were refractory to prior chemotherapy and received a loading dose of 5 mg/m2 of DDP iv followed by 20 mg/m2 by CIVI daily for 5 days. In 25 evaluable patients, there were four (16%) complete or partial responders, nine (25%) with stable disease, and 12 (48%) with tumor progression. One complete and one partial remission were seen in two patients with disseminated basal cell carcinoma, with partial responses also seen in cervical and head and neck squamous cancer. Patients experienced renal damage (21%) and audiotoxicity (10%). Nausea and vomiting was severe in only 6%. DDP by CIVI appears to have comparable toxicity to DDP administered by other schedules; however, the diminished gastrointestinal toxicity makes the drug better tolerated by patients for whom the inconvenience of a 5-day hospitalization is less than that caused by the nausea and vomiting of rapid infusion programs.