Refine
Year of publication
- 2014 (1)
Document Type
- Article (1)
Language
- English (1)
Has Fulltext
- yes (1)
Is part of the Bibliography
- no (1)
Keywords
- - (1)
- Chemotherapy (1)
- Combination chemotherapy (1)
- Docetaxel (1)
- Epithelioid sarcoma (1)
- Gemcitabine (1)
- Palliative chemotherapy (1)
- Sarcoma (1)
- Soft tissue sarcoma (1)
Institute
Publisher
- S. Karger AG (1)
Objective: Epithelioid sarcoma (ES) presents unique clinical features in comparison to other sarcoma subtypes. Data regarding the benefits of chemotherapy are very limited. Combination regimens using gemcitabine and docetaxel (Gem/Doce) have proven to be effective, especially in uterine and nonuterine leiomyosarcoma. Yet, there is no available data on the efficacy of Gem/Doce in ES. Methods: A retrospective analysis of the three participating institutions was performed. Twenty-eight patients with an ES diagnosis presented at one of the participating institutions between 1989 and 2012. Of this group, 17 patients received chemotherapy. Results: Patients' median overall survival (OS) after the beginning of palliative chemotherapy was 21 months, and the 1-year OS was 87%. Twelve patients received Gem/Doce with a clinical benefit rate of 83%. The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 8 months for all patients receiving Gem/Doce. The best response was complete remission in 1 patient and partial remission in 6 patients. All 6 patients receiving Gem/Doce as a first-line treatment showed measurable responses with a median PFS of 9 months. Conclusions: In this retrospective study, Gem/Doce was an effective chemotherapeutic regimen for ES. Prospective studies are needed to better assess the effects of this combination drug therapy.