RECURRENT GASTRIC CARCINOMA (ENDOCRINE CELL TYPE) SUCCESSFULLY TREATED WITH COMBINATION CHEMOTHERAPY-A CASE REPORT-

Abstract

A case of recurrent gfastric carcinoma (endocrine cell type) successfully treated with combination chemotherapy with divided low-dose FP therapy is reported. The patient was a 47-year-old man who underwent total gastrectomy and combined distal pancreatectomy and splenectomy in June 1995 after receiving a diagnosis of Borrmann type 2 gastric carcinoma. The overall degree of advancement was as follows: H₀, P₀, se, n₂, and stage IIIb. The histologic diagnosis was endocrine cell carcinoma. The patient initially presented with loss of appetite and a palpable abdominal mass 18 months later. Abdominal computed tomography showed metastatic lesions in both lobes of the liver, a metastatic abdominal wall mass 3cm in diameter and located directly below the umbilicus, and a pelvic mass 4cm in diameter. The patient underwent divided low-dose FP therapy, and by the 10th course, the hepatic metastases showed complete responses, and the abdominal wall and pelvic masses showed partial responses. The patient was still in good health 2 year and 6 months after initiation of therapy. These results suggest that combination chemotherapy with divided low-dose FP therapy may be useful for the treatment of highly proliferative cancers such as endocrine cell carcinoma, which exhibits a highmalignant potential, and should be actively employed in the treatment of such cancers.