Capecitabine and vinorelbine in metastatic breast cancer

Efficacy and Safety of Low-Dose Oral Etoposide Combined With Capecitabine for Patients With Postoperative Metastatic Breast Cancer Resistant to Anthracycline/Taxanes

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy and safety of metronomic chemotherapy with all-oral combination of low-dose etoposide/capecitabine in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) previously treated with anthracyclines and/or taxanes.

METHODS

Metronomic chemotherapy, giving lower, more frequent doses of chemotherapy drugs over an extended period, often without long breaks between cycles. With oral low-dose etoposide + capecitabine was administered to patients who had postoperative MBC resistant to anthracycline/taxanes: etoposide 30 mg/m2/day, qd for 7 days + capecitabine 1400 mg/m2/day, administered in two equal dose for 14 days, with 21 days as a cycle. Patients received treatments if complete response, partial response, or stable disease was obtained until disease progressed or became intolerable. RECIST criteria were used for standard efficacy evaluation and NCI-CTC version 3.0 was used for evaluation of side effects.

RESULTS

From June 2008 to May 2020, 85 patients received the aforesaid treatment; 67 of these patients were eligible for efficacy and side effects evaluation. After treatment, 6 (8.96%) patients obtained partial response, 41 (61.19%) patients had stable disease, and 20 (29.85%) patients had disease progression. The overall response rate (complete response + partial response) was 8.96%, and disease control rate (complete response + partial response + stable of disease) was 70.15%. Clinical benefits (complete response + partial response + stable of disease ≥ 24 weeks) were obtained for 50% of the patients. The median and mean treatment to progression time was 5 months and 6.06 months (95% CI: 3.43~8.70), respectively. The most common grade I/II side effects were leukopenia and fatigue (15.8%).

CONCLUSIONS

For patients with postoperative MBC resistant to anthracycline/taxanes, oral low-dose etoposide + capecitabine was effective with tolerable safety. The patients did not need antiemetics or leukocytic drugs, and the treatment was cost-effective because the patients did not need to be hospitalized for intravenous infusion.

A Retrospective Analysis of the Effect of Irinotecan-Based Regimens in Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer Previously Treated With Anthracyclines and Taxanes

Background

At present, patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) have few treatment options after receiving anthracyclines and taxanes. Studies have shown that irinotecan has modest systemic activity in some patients previously treated with anthracyclines and taxanes. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of irinotecan-based chemotherapy for breast cancer patients in a metastatic setting.

Methods

We retrospectively collected the clinical information and survival data of 51 patients with MBC who received irinotecan at West China Hospital of Sichuan University. The primary endpoints were the progression free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), and the secondary endpoint was the objective response rate (ORR). To minimize potential confounding factors, we matched 51 patients who received third-line chemotherapy without irinotecan through propensity score matching (PSM) based on age, hormone receptor (HR), and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), compared their OS and PFS rates to those treated with irinotecan.

Results

From July 2012 to October 2020, 51 patients were treated with an irinotecan-containing regimen. The median number of previous treatment lines was 4, and a median of two previous chemotherapy cycles (ranging from 1–14 cycles) were given in a salvage line setting. The ORR was 15.7%, and the disease control rate (DCR) was 37.3%. For the irinotecan group, the median PFS was 3.2 months (95% CI 2.7–3.7), while the median OS was 33.1 months (95% CI 27.9–38.3). Univariate analysis results suggested that irinotecan could improve PFS in patients with visceral metastasis (P=0.031), which was 0.7 months longer than patients without visceral metastasis (3.5 months vs. 2.8 months). Compared to the patients who received third-line non-irinotecan chemotherapy, the irinotecan group showed a longer trend of PFS without statistical significance (3.2 months vs 2.1 months, P = 0.052). Similarly, the OS of the irinotecan group was longer than the third-line survival without irinotecan, but it was not statistically significant (33.1 months vs 18.0 months, P = 0.072).

Conclusions

For MBC patients who were previously treated with anthracyclines and/or taxanes, an irinotecan-containing regimen achieved moderate objective response and showed a trend of survival benefit, which deserves further study.

Vinorelbine plus Capecitabine (Vinocap): a retrospective analysis in heavily pretreated HER2 negative metastatic breast cancer patients

PURPOSE

Metastatic breast cancer is regarded as an incurable entity. In heavily pretreated patients with increasingly limited options for palliative management, ensuring proper quality of life continues is to be an elusive issue. With this in mind, the authors evaluated the efficacy and safety of the Vinorelbine/Capecitabine doublet (VINOCAP).

PATIENTS AND METHODS

The investigators retrospectively analyzed a cohort of 67 women with HER2 negative MBC treated at a large breast cancer practice and a local cancer center with Vinorelbine 22.5 mg/m2 IV on days 1 and 8 combined with Capecitabine 1 g PO BID for 14 consecutive days of 21 day cycles. Patients had been treated with an average of 4 prior lines of chemotherapy. Patient characteristics and outcomes were evaluated.

RESULTS

A total of 67 patients received VINOCAP, and an additional 2 underwent repeat exposure yielding a cohort of 69. Clinical benefit rate, defined as complete response (CR), partial response (PR) or stable disease ≥ 6 months (SD), was 55.07%. Complete response was seen in 4.34%, PR in 18.8% and SD ≥ 6 months in 31.9%. Median progression-free survival was 6.2 months and overall survival 35.47 months after VINOCAP exposure. The most common grade 3-4 toxicity was neutropenia in 10% of cases. Dose had to be reduced in 18% of cases due to toxicity of any type. The regimen was well tolerated, and serious side effects were uncommon.

CONCLUSION

Vinorelbine/Capecitabine appears to be an active and well-tolerated regimen in women with MBC. In particular, encouraging was the efficacy of VINOCAP as fourth or greater line of chemotherapy.

SEOM clinical guidelines in advanced and recurrent breast cancer (2018)

Although the metastasic breast cancer is still an incurable disease, recent advances have increased significantly the time to progression and the overall survival. However, too much information has been produced in the last 2 years, so a well-based guideline is a valuable document in treatment decision making. The SEOM guidelines are intended to make evidence-based recommendations on how to manage patients with advanced and recurrent breast cancer to achieve the best patient outcomes based on a rational use of the currently available therapies. To assign a level of certainty and a grade of recommendation the United States Preventive Services Task Force guidelines methodology was selected as reference.

Comparison of apatinib and capecitabine (Xeloda) with capecitabine (Xeloda) in advanced triple-negative breast cancer as third-line therapy: A retrospective study

The treatment of advanced triple-negative breast cancer, which failed in first-line or second-line therapy, is a significant challenge. We conducted this retrospective study to explore the efficacy and safety of apatinib and capecitabine as the third-line treatment for advanced triple-negative breast cancer.This retrospective study involved 44 advanced triple-negative breast cancer patients who failed in first-line or second-line therapy in Tangshan People's Hospital from January 2016 to February 2017. Twenty-two patients received apatinib and capecitabine, while 22 patients were treated with capecitabine monotherapy as third-line therapy. The progression-free survival (PFS), objective response rate (ORR), disease control rate (DCR), and adverse events were compared between 2 groups.The apatinib and capecitabine group exhibited a higher PFS than capecitabine group (P = .001). Meanwhile, ORR and DCR in apatinib and capecitabine group were better than in capecitabine group (P = .042; .016). The 2 groups showed no significant difference in adverse events except degree I-II bleeding (P = .021). Both the apatinib and capecitabine and the capecitabine regimens revealed good tolerability.The apatinib and capecitabine regimen can achieve a better efficacy and similar serious adverse events compared with capecitabine regimen as the third-line treatment for advanced triple-negative breast cancer.

Vinorelbine With Capecitabine, an Evergreen Doublet for Advanced Breast Cancer: A Systematic Literature Review and Pooled-Analysis of Phase II-III Studies

Metastatic breast cancer (MBC) is treated with cytotoxic drugs or endocrine agents according to the site and extent of the disease, biology, previous treatments, and the patient's condition, comorbidities, and wishes. In MBC, vinorelbine (VRB) and capecitabine (X; VRB + X) are chemotherapy drugs that hold activity as first or later lines of therapy. We conducted a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to quantify the efficacy of the VRB + X combination in HER2-negative (HER2^-) MBC. We searched PubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, and CINAHL for phase II/III clinical trials that assessed VRB + X for patients with HER2^- MBC. Pooled estimates of the overall response rate (RR), median progression-free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS) were computed using random or fixed effects models. Twenty-seven studies were included in the analysis, encompassing a total of 1356 MBC patients. All were phase II (n = 21) or prospective/pilot (n = 5) trials, except for 1 that was a phase III controlled trial. The pooled estimate for the RR in first-line therapy (n = 16 trials) was 52.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 46.5%-59.2%). For second-line trials, data were available in n = 9 studies and the overall RR was 41% (95% CI, 31.2%-51.6%). The pooled estimates for median PFS and OS in first-line therapy were 7.3 (95% CI, 6.2-8.3) and 22.3 (95% CI, 20-24.5) months, respectively. Vinorelbine + X, with the dose and schedules currently used in clinical practice, appears to be an effective and feasible chemotherapy for MBC, for first- and also for second-line therapy.

SEOM clinical guidelines in metastatic breast cancer 2015

Metastatic breast cancer is essentially an incurable disease. However, recent advances have resulted in a significant improvement of overall survival. The SEOM guidelines are intended to make evidence-based recommendations on how to manage patients with metastatic breast cancer to achieve the best patient outcomes based on a rational use of the currently available therapies. To assign a level of certainty and a grade of recommendation the United States Preventive Services Task Force guidelines methodology was selected as reference.

Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (Lipo-Dox®) combined with cyclophosphamide and 5-fluorouracil is effective and safe as salvage chemotherapy in taxane-treated metastatic breast cancer: an open-label, multi-center, non-comparative phase II study

Background

Anthracycline and taxane are classes of drugs that are frequently used in the adjuvant and palliative settings of metastatic breast cancer (MBC); however, treatment failure occurs in most cases. Limited data demonstrated favorable response in MBC after previous taxane-based treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (Lipo-Dox®) used as part of a combination salvage therapy for patients with MBC whose tumors progressed during or after taxane-based treatment.

Methods

Patients with MBC who failed to respond to previous taxane-based treatments were recruited. Treatment with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (40 mg/m²), cyclophosphamide (500 mg/m²), and 5-fluorouracil (500 mg/m²) was administered every 3 weeks. Tumor response to treatment was determined by using the Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumor criteria version 1.0, and left ventricular ejection fraction was measured before and after treatment using echocardiography. Each patient was followed for 30 days after the last dose of study medication or until resolution/stabilization of any drug-related adverse event.

Results

Forty-five patients were recruited. As of December 2012, the median follow-up duration was 29.8 months, the overall response rate was 41.9 %, the median progression-free survival was 8.2 months, and the median overall survival was 36.6 months for all treated patients. Grade 3/4 neutropenia, leucopenia, and neutropenic fever were observed in 14 %, 9 %, and 1 % of the cycles, respectively. Other non-hematologic adverse effects were mild to moderate and were manageable. No decrease in left ventricular ejection function was noted.

Conclusion

This regimen of combined of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide, and 5-fluorouracil exhibited a promising overall response rate, progression-free survival rate, and overall survival rate, with a safe cardiac toxicity profile and manageable adverse effects. This regimen could be considered as a treatment option for patients with MBC whose tumors progressed during or after taxane-based treatment.

First-line chemotherapy with docetaxel plus capecitabine followed by capecitabine or hormone maintenance therapy for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer patients

The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate whether maintenance therapy with capecitabine or hormone replacement therapy (HRT) results in improved progression-free survival (PFS) in metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients who had previously achieved disease control with first-line docetaxel plus capecitabine (TX) chemotherapy. Seventy-nine metastatic breast cancer patients treated between January 2008 and June 2013 with TX chemotherapy were retrospectively analyzed. Following successful initial disease control by the combination chemotherapy, 39 patients received single-agent capecitabine maintenance therapy and 40 patients received HRT as maintenance therapy. The PFS time, objective response rate, clinical benefit rate and safety of the two groups were compared. The median PFS of the total cohort (n=79) was 11.0 months. Furthermore, the median PFS time of the capecitabine (n=39) and HRT groups (n=40) were 10.9 and 11.1 months, respectively (P=0.283). Compared with the PFS time of maintenance treatment only, single-agent capecitabine treatment following TX chemotherapy prolonged the PFS time by 6.8 months and HRT following TX chemotherapy prolonged PFS time by 5.8 months (P=0.551). Of the total cohort, 49 patients did not receive palliative endocrine therapy prior to chemotherapy, including 22 patients in the capecitabine maintenance group and 27 patients in the HRT maintenance group. The PFS time from the commencement of maintenance treatment was significantly different between the two groups, 6.1 months in the capecitabine group compared with 11.5 months in the HRT group (P=0.045). For the 30 patients who underwent palliative endocrine therapy prior to TX chemotherapy, the PFS times of the capecitabine and HRT maintenance treatment groups were 7.5 and 4.1 months, respectively (P=0.043). However, the occurrence of adverse events, such as hematological and gastrointestinal toxicity, as well as hand-foot syndrome, were not significantly different between the two groups. The current study indicated that single-agent capecitabine maintenance therapy may be a potential treatment strategy for MBC patients who responded to capecitabine-based chemotherapy. In particular, capecitabine may provide a more effective maintenance treatment duration compared with HRT for patients who had previously undergone first-line palliative HRT for MBC.

Cost of adverse events during treatment with everolimus plus exemestane or single-agent chemotherapy in patients with advanced breast cancer in Western Europe

OBJECTIVE

Treatment options for recurrent or progressive hormone receptor-positive (HR+) advanced breast cancer include chemotherapy and everolimus plus exemestane (EVE + EXE). This study estimates the costs of managing adverse events (AEs) during EVE + EXE therapy and single-agent chemotherapy in Western Europe.

METHODS

An economic model was developed to estimate the per patient cost of managing grade 3/4 AEs for patients who were treated with EVE + EXE or chemotherapies. AE rates for patients receiving EVE + EXE were collected from the phase III BOLERO-2 trial. AE rates for single-agent chemotherapy, capecitabine, docetaxel, or doxorubicin were collected from published clinical trial data. AEs with at least 2% prevalence for any of the treatments were included in the model. A literature search was conducted to obtain costs of managing each AE, which were then averaged across Western European countries (when available). Per patient costs for managing AEs among patients receiving different therapies were reported in 2012 euros (€).

RESULTS

The EVE + EXE combination had the lowest average per patient cost of managing AEs (€730) compared to all chemotherapies during the first year of treatment (doxorubicin: €1230; capecitabine: €1721; docetaxel: €2390). The most costly adverse event among all patients treated with EVE + EXE was anemia (on average €152 per patient). The most costly adverse event among all patients treated with capecitabine, docetaxel, or doxorubicin was lymphocytopenia (€861 per patient), neutropenia (€821 per patient), and leukopenia (€382 per patient), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The current model estimates that AE management during the treatment of HR+ advanced breast cancer will cost one-half to one-third less for EVE + EXE patients than for chemotherapy patients. The consideration of AE costs could have important implications in the context of healthcare spending for advanced breast cancer treatment.

A Randomized Phase II Trial of Capecitabine Plus Vinorelbine Followed by Docetaxel Versus Adriamycin Plus Cyclophosphamide Followed by Docetaxel as Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer

Purpose

Given the promising activity of capecitabine and vinorelbine in metastatic breast cancer, this randomized phase II trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of this combination as neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer.

Materials and Methods

Patients with operable breast cancer (n=75) were randomly assigned to receive either four cycles of adriamycin 60 mg/m² plus cyclophosphamide 600 mg/m² every 3 weeks followed by four cycles of docetaxel 75 mg/m² every 3 weeks (AC-D) or four cycles of capecitabine 2,000 mg/m² (day 1-14) plus vinorelbine 25 mg/m² (days 1 and 8) every 3 weeks followed by four cycles of docetaxel 75 mg/m² (CV-D). The primary endpoint was pathologic complete response (pCR) in the primary breast (ypT0/is).

Results

Most patients (84%) had locally advanced (n=41) or inflammatory breast cancer (n=22). pCR rates in the primary breast were 15% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7% to 30%) and 11% (95% CI, 4% to 26%) in the AC-D and CV-D groups, respectively. The overall response rates and 5-year progression-free survival rates in the AC-D and CV-D groups were 62% and 64%, and 51.3% (95% CI, 34.6% to 68.0%) and 30.2% (95% CI, 13.3% to 47.1%), respectively. Although both regimens were well tolerated, CV-D showed less frequent grade 3-4 neutropenia and vomiting than AC-D, whereas manageable diarrhea and hand-foot syndrome were more common in the CV-D group.

Conclusion

CV-D is a feasible and active non-anthracycline–based neoadjuvant chemotherapy regimen for breast cancer.

Individualized chemotherapy based on organ selectivity: a retrospective study of vinorelbine and capecitabine for patients with metastatic breast cancer

OBJECTIVES

This study proposed a conception of individualized chemotherapy based on organ selectivity of drug distribution by retrospectively comparing the effect of vinorelbine and capecitabine in patients with metastatic breast cancer.

METHODS

Between January 2002 and December 2009, 133 patients with lung metastasis and 87 patients with liver metastasis were analyzed and followed up until December 2012. The survival analysis was performed by Kaplan-Meier. Multivariate analysis was conducted to identify independent prognostic factors.

RESULTS

The median time to progression of the vinorelbine, capecitabine and anthracycline/taxane groups of patients with lung metastasis was 5.7, 2.9 and 2.1 months, respectively. Median overall survival of the vinorelbine group (27.4 months) was longer than the capecitabine (12.2 months, P = 0.027) and anthracycline/taxane groups (9.1 months, P < 0.001) in patients with lung metastasis. The median time to progression of the vinorelbine, capecitabine and anthracycline/taxane groups of patients with liver metastasis was 2.3, 7.3 and 2.6 months, respectively. Median overall survival of the capecitabine group (15.2 months) was longer than the vinorelbine (9.0 months, P = 0.029) and anthracycline/taxane groups (6.4 months, P = 0.004) in patients with liver metastasis.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicate that vinorelbine and capecitabine have different advantageous effects in breast cancer patients with lung/liver metastasis. Thus, we propose individualized chemotherapy based on organ specificity and pharmacokinetics.

Efficacy and toxicity profile of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (Caelyx) in patients with advanced breast cancer

Many patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) have been treated previously with taxanes and/or anthracyclines, which renders reinduction of anthracyclines in the palliative setting impossible because of the high cardiotoxicity of these drugs. Pegylated liposomal doxorubicin represents a means of reinducing anthracyclines without increasing cardiotoxicity. The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the efficacy and toxicity of Caelyx in patients with MBC. Patients with histologically confirmed MBC were eligible for this retrospective study if they had received palliative chemotherapy with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin between 1 January 2002 and 31 December 2006 at the Department for Gynecology and Obstetrics at the University of Heidelberg (Germany). The main endpoints were time to progression, overall survival, and safety of the treatment with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin. In all, 141 patients were included in this retrospective trial. The median age of the patients was 54 years (range 24-84 years). Of the patients, 43% had received five to six previous chemotherapy regimens before pegylated liposomal doxorubicin was recommended. In 33% of patients, more than three organs were involved. The most commonly involved organs were bones, liver, and lungs; 37 patients had received three or at least six cycles of Caelyx. During the treatment with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin, left ventricular ejection function was not reduced by more than 15%. The major effects (grade 4) were hematological toxicity (anemia, leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia), hand-foot syndrome, and stomatitis. In nine patients, the dose was reduced and in three patients chemotherapy with Caelyx was stopped owing to hematological toxicity. In 20 patients, the dose was reduced and in nine patients chemotherapy was stopped owing to nonhematological toxicity. The median time to disease progression was 6.5 months; the overall median survival was 13 months after the first course of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin was initiated. This retrospective study confirmed the efficacy and good tolerability of pegylated liposomal doxorubicin in patients with MBC who had been treated previously with anthracycline. A dosage of 40 mg/m² body surface every 4 weeks is equally effective with less toxicity.

All-oral combination of vinorelbine and capecitabine as first-line treatment in HER2/Neu-negative metastatic breast cancer

PURPOSE

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of an all-oral vinorelbine and capecitabine combination therapy in anthracycline- ± taxane-pretreated HER2/Neu-negative metastatic breast cancer (MBC).

METHODS

A phase 2 trial including women >18 years with HER2/Neu-negative MBC previously exposed to anthracycline- ± taxane-based chemotherapy in the adjuvant or neoadjuvant setting. Enrolled patients received oral vinorelbine 60 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8 and oral capecitabine 1,000 mg/m(2) twice daily on days 1-14 on a 3 weekly schedule. Patients with progressive disease after 3 cycles discontinued the study, while the remaining patients continued treatment for a maximum of 6 cycles.

RESULTS

From January 2007 to March 2011, 30 patients were enrolled in this study (median age 47 years). In the 28 evaluable patients, the overall response rate was 57.1 % (95 % CI 30-67 %), including 3 complete (10.7 %) and 13 partial (46.4 %) responses. Six (21.4 %) patients suffered from disease progression. With a median follow-up time of 13 months, the median time to disease progression was 8.6 months (95 % CI 6.2-10.6 months) and the median survival time was 27.2 months. Treatment-related adverse events were manageable, and no World Health Organization grade 4 toxicities were noted. Neutropenia observed in 6 (21.4 %) patients was the main grade 3 toxicity. Grade 3 nausea and vomiting were reported in 2 (7.1 %) and 3 (10.7 %) patients, respectively. Two (7.1 %) patients developed grade 3 hand and foot syndrome.

CONCLUSION

These results show that the combination of oral vinorelbine and capecitabine is an effective and well-tolerated first-line regimen for HER2/Neu-negative MBC patients pretreated with anthracyclines ± taxanes.

P38MAPK is a major determinant of the balance between apoptosis and autophagy triggered by 5-fluorouracil: implication in resistance

5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), together with other drugs such as oxaliplatin, is one of the most important pharmacological agents in the treatment of colorectal cancer. Although mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) have been extensively connected with resistance to platinum compounds, no role has been established in 5-FU resistance. Here we demonstrate that p38MAPK activation is a key determinant in the cellular response to 5-FU. Thus, inhibition of p38MAPKα by SB203580 compound or by short-hairpin RNA interference-specific knockdown correlates with a decrease in the 5-FU-associated apoptosis and chemical resistance in both HaCaT and HCT116 cells. Activation of p38MAPK by 5-FU was dependent on canonical MAP2K, MAPK kinase (MKK)-3 and MKK6. In addition, ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM) and ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3 related (ATR) showed a redundancy of function for the final activation of p38MAPK. Resistance associated with p38MAPK inhibition correlates with an autophagic response that was mediated by a decrease in p53-driven apoptosis, without effect onto p53-dependent autophagy. Moreover, the results with colorectal cancer-derived cell lines with different p53 status and patterns of resistance to 5-FU suggest that de novo and acquired resistance was controlled by similar mechanisms. In summary, our data demonstrate a critical role for the p38MAPK signaling pathway in the cellular response to 5-FU by controlling the balance between apoptosis and autophagy.

Intravenous versus oral vinorelbine plus capecitabine as second-line treatment in advanced breast cancer patients. A retrospective comparison of two consecutive phase II studies

Vinorelbine (i.v.) plus capecitabine (oral) combination therapy is active in anthracycline/taxane pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer. Availability of oral vinorelbine provides this combination in an all-oral formulation. Two consecutive phase II trials differing only in vinorelbine administration routes evaluated their respective activities and tolerabilities in this population. In the i.v. group (n = 38) disease control was 61% (37% PR, 24% SD), median TTP 6.8 months and median survival 11.3 months. In the oral group (n = 38) disease control was 77% (5.4% CR, 34% PR, 38% SD), median TTP 7 months and median survival 10 months. G3-G4 neutropenia was more common in the oral group (p < 0.05); G2-G3 anaemia [5] and G3 thrombocytopenia [1] were observed only in the oral group. Although the comparison between the two regimens was not randomized, the results observed in these two consecutive phase II studies may suggest that oral and iv vinorelbine, in combination with capecitabine, can achieve similar responses in patients with metastatic breast cancer refractory to anthra-taxane combinations.