ABSTRACT
We report a patient with far-advanced gastric cancer treated by weekly administration of paclitaxel (TXL) over 2 years. The patient was a 66-year-old female with peritoneal metastasis and remarkable lymph node metastasis of scirrhous gastric cancer. She underwent a non-curative resection with total gastrectomy and splenectomy in May 2002. Postoperative chemotherapy with TS-1 (80 mg/body) was performed. Due to grade 4 neutropenia and grade 2 anorexia, this treatment could not be continued. Three months after surgery, the tumor marker (CA19-9) had elevated to an abnormal level. Alternatively, TXL was administered at a weekly dose of 70 mg/m2 for 3 weeks followed by 6 weeks rest from September 2002. The tumor marker (CA19-9) gradually decreased to the normal level. Because of the long rest interval, 10 courses of treatment could be continued, and the patient has been alive over 2 years with the cancer controlled. There have been few effective chemotherapies for gastric cancer with peritoneal metastasis. Weekly paclitaxel therapy is considered to be effective for the treatment of advanced scirrhous gastric cancer with peritoneal metastasis.
