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SummaryBackground: Anthracyclines and taxanes are the most active drugs against breast cancer and the search after their optimal combination is under intensive investigation in both the advanced and early disease settings. A dose-finding study of epidoxorubicin (E) and docetaxel (D) was conducted in advanced breast cancer (ABC) to define the maximum tolerated dose (MTD) of the combination with and without granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) support and to characterise its toxicity and activity profile.Patients and methods: Forty-two patients who received neither palliative chemotherapy nor adjuvant anthracyclines (55% with dominant visceral disease and 66% with ^2 sites involved) with measurable/evaluable lesions, were treated at four dose levels starting from E 75 mg/m 2 and D 75 mg/m 2 to E 120 mg/m 2 and D 85 mg/m 2 . A maximum of four cycles of the combination was given every three weeks and four additional cycles of single agent D were allowed in responding patients. Cardiac function was monitored at baseline and at every second course by echocardiography.Results: Febrile neutropenia (two patients) and prolonged, severe neutropenia (absolute neutrophil count (ANC) <0.1 x 10

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BACKGROUNDCurrently, there is no standard treatment for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who do not experience a response to first‐line immunotherapy. In the current Phase II study, the authors explored the antitumor activity of a combination of gemcitabine and oxaliplatin (L‐OHP) in this setting.METHODSForty‐two patients with RCC who had progressive disease following immunotherapy received gemcitabine (1000 mg/m2 intravenously on Days 1 and 8 every 21 days) and L‐OHP (90 mg/m2 intravenously on Day 1 every 21 days) for a minimum of 2 cycles before responses were evaluated. Responses to treatment and toxicity were recorded according to the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors and the National Cancer Institute Common Toxicity Criteria, respectively.RESULTSNo complete responses were recorded; however, 6 patients experienced a partial response (14.28%; 95% confidence interval, 5.43–28.5%), 11 patients (26.19%) had temporary stable disease as a best response, and the remaining 25 patients (59.52%) experienced progression despite receiving treatment. The median time to disease progression was 2.5 months (mean, 3.86 months; range, 1.5–11.0 months), whereas the median overall survival was 9.5 months (mean, 10.46 months; range, 4.0–22.5 months). With regard to toxicity, treatment generally was well tolerated, with only one episode of Grade 4 toxicity and expected episodes of Grade 3 toxicity, including myelosuppression and neuropathy.CONCLUSIONSThe current results suggest that the combination of gemcitabine and L‐OHP possesses a certain level of activity and an acceptable toxicity profile in patients with immunotherapy‐resistant advanced RCC. Cancer 2004. © 2004 American Cancer Society.

Paclitaxel at 200 mg/m2 and cyclophosphamide at 1,750 mg/m2 can be safely administered every three weeks to women with advanced breast cancer. The moderate antitumour activity observed with the schedule tested argues against its use as initial therapy for advanced breast cancer.