Gabapentin monotherapy for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to investigate the efficacy and safety of gabapentin monotherapy in the management of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain. PATIENTS: Seventy-five cancer patients who had previously received chemotherapy, and had experienced at least one symptom of neuropathic pain were included in the intervention group. They received a fixed low-dose of gabapentin (800 mg/day). The control group consisted of 35 cancer patients with similar treatment history and symptomatology, who refused treatment with gabapentin and, therefore, received a fixed-dose combination of naproxen and codeine/paracetamol. OUTCOME MEASURES: Patients were grouped in three categories according to the severity of their neuropathic symptoms at baseline: mild, moderate, and severe. Analgesic efficacy of the study drug was assessed by means of a patient-answered questionnaire. Four stages of analgesic response were established: complete, partial, minor, and no response. RESULTS: All patients completed the study and were evaluable. In the intervention arm, gabapentin led to a complete response in 25.3% of patients (19/75), partial response in 44% (33/75), minor response in 25.3% (19/75), and no response in 5.3% (4/75). The response to gabapentin correlated with the severity of the underlying neurotoxicity. Approximately 25% of patients receiving gabapentin experienced mild somnolence, but none discontinued it. In the control group, none experienced complete response (0/35), while partial, minor, and no response were observed in 5.7% (2/35), 45.7% (16/35), and 48.6% (17/35), respectively. Compared with the control group, gabapentin therapy led to a statistically significant better response in patients of each baseline neurotoxicity group. CONCLUSIONS: Gabapentin monotherapy seems to be well tolerated and useful for the management of chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain.

Retinol-binding protein, acute phase reactants and Helicobacter pylori infection in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma.

AIM: To determine the serum levels of c-reactive protein (CRP), transferrin (TRF), a2-macroglobulin (A2M), ceruloplasmin (CER), a1-acid glycoprotein (AAG), pre-albumin (P-ALB) and retinol-binding protein (RBP) in gastric carcinoma patients and to explore their possible correlation with underlying Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) infection. METHODS: We measured the serum levels of CRP, TRF, A2M, CER, AAG, P-ALB, and RBP in 153 preoperative patients (93 males; mean age: 63.1+/-11.3 years) with non-cardia gastric adenocarcinoma and 19 healthy subjects. RESULTS: The levels of CRP, CER, RBP, and AAG in cancer patients were significantly higher than those in healthy controls (P<0.0001), while no difference was found regarding the TRF, P-ALB, and A2M levels. Cancer patients with H pylori infection had significantly lower RBP values compared to non-infected ones (P<0.0001) and also higher values of CRP and AAG (P = 0.09 and P = 0.08, respectively). CONCLUSION: High serum levels of CRP, CER and AAG in cancer patients do not seem to be related to H pylori infection. Retinol-binding protein seems to discriminate between infected and non-infected patients with gastric carcinoma. Further studies are needed to explore if it is directly involved in the pathogenesis of the disease or is merely an epiphenomenon.