As the effect of the filling process of portable pumps on the homogeneity of drug concentrations had not been investigated,in this study,we examined the influence of the filling process of the anticancer agent 5-fluorourcil (5-FU) and saline in this respect.We used 3 types of pump and filled the pump in 3 different ways (5-FU first and then saline,saline first and then 5-FU,and mixing 5-FU and saline beforehand and then filling).There was a significant variation in the 5-FU concentration when 5-FU and saline were added separately but the drug concentration did not vary when 5-FU and saline were mixed before filling the pumps.The result also varied with the type of pump.Our findings suggested that the drug and saline were not mixed uniformly in some types of pump when 5-FU and saline were added separately.Therefore,it is important to mix the drug and saline well before filling pumps.
