Efficacy and tolerability of weekly low‐dose cisplatin concurrent with radiotherapy in head and neck cancer patients

AIMS: In this retrospective analysis, we describe the efficacy and tolerability of weekly cisplatin 40 mg/m(2) used in concurrent chemoradiation of head and neck cancer at the Townsville Cancer Centre. METHODS: Review of medical records of patients who received radical chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer at Townsville Cancer Centre from 2003 to 2009. RESULTS: In all 102 patients were analysed, 62 of whom had definitive chemoradiation and the remainder adjuvant chemoradiotherapy. Median follow up was 20.1 months (range 5-86 months). Overall 68.6% of patients received 5 weeks or more of planned chemotherapy. Radiotherapy interruptions occurred in four (6.4%) patients. The rate of grade 3-4 adverse events was 51% including neutropenia (18.6%), mucositis (21.8%) and dysphagia (12.9%) and 30.7% of patients needed hospital admission to manage toxicities. For definitive and adjuvant groups, estimated 3-year survival was 64.5 and 71.5%, respectively, and estimated 3-year disease-specific survival rates were 70.3 and 81.6%, respectively. The 3-year overall survival for patients who received five or more cycles of chemotherapy was 75.2%, compared to 52.6% for those receiving fewer than five cycles (P = 0.018). CONCLUSION: Despite this is being a small retrospective study, survival figures and toxicity profiles of low dose weekly cisplatin are comparable to historical controls using high-dose regimens, hence justifying our approach. In addition, radiotherapy interruptions are minimized and cisplatin is easy to administer in outpatient settings. Future three-arm studies could include this regimen as the basis of treatment combined with targeted therapies.