Abstract
The pharmacokinetic of 5-Fluorouracil and its permeation into malignant pleural effusion was investigated in 9 patients with breast carcinoma who received 600 mg/m2 5-Fluorouracil i.v. within the CMF protocol. Despite the short plasma halflife of 5-Fluorouracil (16,8 min) distinct concentrations with peak levels up to 115 nmol/ml after 30 min were observed in the effusions. In consequence of the rapid elimination of 5-Fluorouracil from the plasma and the comparatively slow retrograde diffusion (t 1/2 55 min) from the pleural space, the drug levels persisted longer in the effusions, than in the blood. Thus the area under the curve of the pleural level (AUC) reached 50% (27-85%) of the corresponding plasma AUC (10,9 +/- 2,3 mumol x min x ml-1). From a pharmacokinetic point of view, no additional local instillations of 5-Fluorouracil are necessary during a systemic therapy of breast cancer with pleural effusions.
Published Version
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