Gemcitabine Treatment in Pretreated Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma: Experience in 44 Patients

Abstract

The results of the present phase II study show activity of gemcitabine as a single agent in patients with pretreated cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Further studies that use gemcitabine alone or in combination with other drugs in earlier stages of the disease are needed.

EORTC consensus recommendations for the treatment of mycosis fungoides/Sézary syndrome

“…114 However, in this study, no patients with stage IIB disease were included. Thus, the recommendation 121 Kurzrock and colleagues assessed the efficacy of pentostatin (deoxycoformycin) in a study that included 6 patients with tumour-stage MF who had received prior therapy. 49 One patient achieved a CR and 3 attained a PR.…”

“…16,129 As mentioned earlier, gemcitabine monotherapy achieved an ORR of 70% in 30 previously treated patients with T3 or T4 disease. 121 Kuzel and colleagues conducted a phase II trial of 2-chlorodeoxyadenosine in 21 patients with MF disease stage IB-IVB: among the 5 patients with stage III disease, 1 achieved a CR and 1 achieved a PR. 51 One of 8 patients with stage IVA disease achieved a CR; there were no PRs, and neither of the 2 patients with stage IVB disease responded.…”

Cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma: 2011 update on diagnosis, risk‐stratification, and management

“…For example, overall response rates of 58-76% (and 41% complete response rate) have been observed in patients with MF/SS treated with low-dose, oral methotrexate [336][337][338][339]. In contrast, for patients with an adequate performance status, single-agent gemcitabine [340][341][342][343][344], pegylated liposomal doxorubicin [345][346][347][348] and pentostatin [349][350][351][352][353][354][355] are frequently utilized (Table VI). Gemcitabine, a pyrimidine nucleoside analog, is associated with overall and complete response rates of 50-70% and 10-20%, respectively, but is associated with neutropenia and nonhematologic toxicities [356].…”

Mechanisms of apoptosis induction by nucleoside analogs

“…The recognition that the pyrimidine nucleoside analog arabinosylcytosine (ara-C), had activity in acute myelogenous leukemia generated enthusiasm for the investigation of congeners that might have a broader spectrum of activity (Grant, 1988). This was achieved with the development of gemcitabine, another carbohydratemodified analog of deoxycytidine , which is effective against a variety of solid tumors (Storniolo et al, 1999), and may also have therapeutic value in hematological malignancies (Santoro et al, 2000;Zinzani et al, 2000). In parallel with the emergence of gemcitabine came the investigations that established that the family of purine nucleoside analogs, fludarabine, cladribine, and pentostatin, has major activity in indolent B-cell malignancies.…”