Doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide: effective chemotherapy for advanced endometrial adenocarcinoma

Eight of 11 consecutive patients with metastatic endometrial adenocarcinoma completed more than one course of treatment with a doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide combination. Six of these patients improved, with three showing a complete remission of all disease manifestations and two experiencing an objective partial response (greater than 50 per cent tumor shrinkage). Median duration of all responses was 10 months, with three patients surviving more than one year. Review of patient characteristics suggests that, unlike progestin therapy, this new program is effective in the presence of poorly differentiated tumors and short progression-free intervals. Therefore, chemotherapy should probably supplement progestins in future clinical trials and should certainly be considered when hormone therapy fails in advanced endometrial cancer. Moreover, if the degree of efficacy reported herein is confirmed, it will justify clinical trials that include patients in earlier stages of disease.