Phase II study of tetrahydropyranyl adriamycin (pirarubicin) in elderly patients with advanced breast cancer.

Thirty elderly (over 70 years) women with measurable advanced breast cancer entered into this Phase II study. An initial dose of 30 mg/m 2 of pirarubicin (THP) every 3 weeks was given intravenously. THP was escalated by levels of 10 mg/m 2 according to the blood cell count done at day 14 and day 21 until a maximum dose per cycle of 70 mg/m 2 was reached. The mean total cumulative dose of THP received was 204 mg/m 2 (range 30-710 mg/m 2 )