Gemcitabine and cisplatin in inoperable, loco-regionally advanced and metastatic gallbladder cancer: A study from Northern India cancer institute

Aims: The primary objective of this study was to determine the response rates of the gemcitabine and cisplatin combination chemotherapy in treatment naive patients with inoperable gall bladder cancer. The secondary objectives were to evaluate the toxicity, progression free survival (PFS), and overall survival. Materials and Methods: Treatment naive patients with histologically proven inoperable gallbladder cancer treated with gemcitabine and cisplatin chemotherapy between March 2010 and December 2014 were included in this retrospective study. The dose of gemcitabine and cisplatin was 1 g/m2 on day 1 and 8, and 75 mg/m2 on day 1, in a 21-day cycle respectively. Computed tomography scan was used for response assessment. Results: There were 32 men and 59 women with a median age of 52 years (range 30–67 years). Of the 91 patients, 9 (9.9%) patients achieved a complete response and 41 (45.1%) patients achieved a partial response for an overall response rate of 55%. The median number of chemotherapy cycles administered were 6 (range 1–9). The median progression free survival (PFS) was 5.4 months [95% confidence interval (CI) 3.9–7.9 months], with one year survival rate of 34.1%. Common toxicity criteria grade 3 or 4 anemia was seen in 4 (4.4%) and 2 (2.2%) patients respectively. Grade 3 neutropenia and thrombocytopenia was observed in 10 (10.9%) and 9 (9.9%) patients respectively. Conclusion: The combination of gemcitabine and cisplatin is active in advanced gallbladder carcinoma with mild toxicity.