Aprepitant plus palonosetron as salvage therapy for CINV induced by moderately emetogenic chemotherapy in cancer patients
Background Despite the efficacy of prophylaxis with serotonin type 3 (5-HT3) receptor antagonists, nausea and vomiting are still among the most common chemotherapy-induced toxicities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of adding aprepitant in patients with chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) refractory to prophylaxis with 5-HT3 receptor antagonists and dexamethasone. Patients and Methods Between January 2008 and November 2010, 51 patients (median age 59 years) with a variety of malignancies (breast cancer: 23; lung cancer: 12; sarcoma: 6; ovarian cancer: 3; other: 7) were enrolled. All patients were refractory to antiemetic therapy according to ASCO guidelines and developed at least grade 2 nausea and/or vomiting after the first chemotherapy course. Aprepitant was given at 125 mg on day 1 and 80 mg on days 2–3. Patients also received a single dose of palonosetron 250 μg on day 1 plus dexamethasone 12–20 mg at a constant dose. Results After addition of aprepitant, the number of patients with grade 3/4 nausea decreased from 31 (61%) to 4 (8%), and those with grade 2 nausea from 20 (39%) to 6 (12%) [both p