Improved efficacy and safety of low-dose oxaliplatin/pegylated liposomal doxorubicin/S-1 regimen in advanced gastric cancer: a cohort study

Dose-limiting neurotoxicity is the major side effect caused by oxaliplatin treatment. Optimization of oxaliplatin-containing chemotherapeutic regimens may potentially benefit advanced gastric cancer (AGC) patients. We tried to reduce the dose of oxaliplatin and add a drug to compensate for the efficacy. This cohort study evaluated the efficacy and side effects of low-dose oxaliplatin combined with pegylated liposomal doxorubicin and S-1 (D-SOX) as first-line treatment for AGC. 64 AGC patients treated in our hospital between January 2015 and December 2018 were included in this study. Among them, 29 cases received standard S-1 and oxaliplatin (SOX) regimen, and 35 cases received D-SOX. Progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), response rate (RR), and safety were analyzed. The median PFS was 7.0 months [95% confidence interval (CI): 5.77 to 8.23 months] in the SOX group and 9.3 months (95% CI: 8.145 to 10.45 months) in the D-SOX group (P=0.021). The median OS was 12.5 months (95% CI: 7.00 to 17.97 months) in the SOX group and 18.7 months (95% CI: 14.485 to 22.9 months) in the D-SOX group (P=0.027). The incidence of treatment-related grade III-IV adverse events (AEs) was less than 10%. The RRs to these 2 regimens were similar (P=0.609). The incidence of neurotoxicity was significantly reduced in the D-SOX group (62.8% vs. 82.7%). Low-dose oxaliplatin combined with S-1 and pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) regimen improved OS and PFS, while exhibiting better toxicity profile as compared with standard SOX regimen for AGC.