Combination therapy with docetaxel and S-1 as a first-line treatment in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer: a retrospective analysis

Background: We performed a single-institution retrospective study to evaluate the efficacy and toxicities of combination therapy with docetaxel and S-1 in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer. Methods: Eighty-six patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer were enrolled. Patients received docetaxel, 40 mg/m(2), on day 1 and oral S-1, 80 mg/m(2)/day, on days 1 to 14 every 3 weeks. Results: All 84 patients were assessable for response. The overall response rate was 52.4% (44/84) and the disease control rate was 96.4% (81/84). Median time to progression (TTP) and overall survival (OS) were 6.5 (95% CI, 4.8-8.1 months) and 15.1 months (95% CI, 11.7-18.5 months), respectively. The major toxicities were neutropenia, leukopenia, alopecia and anorexia. Grade 3 or 4 hematologic toxicities included neutropenia in 31 patients (36.0%), leukopenia in 27 (31.7%), febrile neutropenia in four (4.7%), and anemia in one (1.2%). Other grade 3 toxicities included anorexia in five patients (5.8%), and stomatitis, diarrhea and nausea in one each (1.2%). There was one treatment-related death (1.2%). Conclusion: The combination of docetaxel and S-1 had good clinical activity with acceptable toxicity in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer.