What Researchers Did
Researchers conducted a prospective phase II study to evaluate weekly paclitaxel and carboplatin with concurrent conventional radiotherapy (72 Gy) in 33 patients with advanced inoperable head and neck cancer.
What They Found
The study found a clinical complete response in 20 patients (60%) and a partial response in 10 patients (30%), resulting in an overall response rate of 90%. Furthermore, 17 out of 18 patients who underwent biopsy at the primary tumor site after therapy had negative results.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
This combination therapy shows promising high response rates for advanced inoperable head and neck cancer. It suggests a potentially effective treatment approach that could improve disease control for Canadian patients facing this challenging diagnosis.
Canadian Relevance
This study has no direct Canadian connection.
Study Limitations
The study's phase II design and relatively small sample size (33 patients) limit the generalizability and definitive conclusions of its findings.