Efficacy of Preventive Treatment for Delayed Emesis Induced by FOLFOX4 Chemotherapy

Abstract

  The control of delayed emesis is very important in order to continue ambulatory chemotherapy. We performed retrospective study that examined the efficacy of preventive treatment (granisetron+dexamethasone+domperidone) for delayed emesis induced by FOLFOX4 chemotherapy for advanced and recurrent colorectal cancer. The subjects were 92 patients who underwent FOLFOX4 chemotherapy at the Cancer Institute Hospital of JFCR (group with preventive treatment: 50, group without preventive treatment: 42), and the observation period was set as the 1st-9th cycle. The complete nausea inhibition rate was 50.0% in the group with and 21.5% in the group without preventive treatment, showing a significantly higher inhibition rate in the former (p=0.0047). The complete vomiting inhibition rates were 86.0% and 66.7%, respectively, again showing a significantly higher inhibition rate in the former (p=0.015). On multivariate analysis (multiple logistic analysis), the development of nausea/vomiting and preventive treatment for delayed emesis were significantly associated, showing that the treatment was an independent preventive factor. All adverse reactions induced by preventive treatment were mild, suggesting no safety-related problem. These findings suggested the usefulness of preventive treatment with granisetron, dexamethasone, and domperidone for FOLFOX4 chemotherapy-induced delayed emesis.