CAP therapy for advanced, recurrent and/or metastatic malignant tumors of the head and neck

One-day CAP therapy utilizing CPM, THP-ADM and CDDP was performed on 33 patients with malignant tumors in the head and neck region which were able to be evaluated. As a result, CR was obtained in 6 patients and PR in 11 patients; thus the overall response rate was 51.5%. The present therapy is worthwhile as a neo-adjuvant chemotherapy and it was effective in patients with relatively severe systemic condition or those with lung metastasis. When the tissues were classified histologically, the present therapy was effective against anaplastic carcinoma and adenocarcinoma. Since agents significantly effective against adenocarcinoma have not been available so far, the present therapy is considered to be a useful method especially for the treatment of adenocarcinoma. Moreover, because irreversible side effects scarcely appeared and because the period for 1 course of treatment is short enough, the present therapy is considered to be a method with little burden on patients.