Severe enterocolitis with capecitabine (CAPE) is not a predictor of gastrointestinal (GI) toxicity with infusional 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)–based regimens: An institutional analysis.

Abstract

89 Background: Enterocolitis is a potentially fatal toxicity of CAPE. The safety of infusional 5-FU-based regimens in patients developing severe enterocolitis with CAPE is not well established in the literature. Methods: After institutional review board approval, a database search identified patients who received infusional 5-FU-based regimens between January 2015 and July 2022 in a tertiary care cancer center after experiencing severe CAPE-induced enterocolitis, defined as the presence of grade 3 or higher diarrhea and features of enterocolitis on computed tomography (CT) scan. Data on patient characteristics, grade of CAPE-induced diarrhea, clinical course, details of 5-FU-based regimens administered after recovery, and outcomes were collected by retrospective electronic chart review. Results: Among the 791 patients treated with CAPE during the study period, 27 (3.4%) developed grade 3 or higher diarrhea, and 15 of these 27 patients (1.9%) had evidence of enterocolitis on CT scan. All patients were treated with supportive measures. All but 1 patient recovered fully; 1 patient died due to a condition unrelated to CAPE toxicity. After complete recovery, 7 patients aged 46 to 69 years (median, 68 years) received FOLFOX (oxaliplatin and infusional 5-FU). The time interval between recovery from CAPE-induced enterocolitis and the start of infusional 5-FU ranged from 4 to 20 weeks (median, 12 weeks), with 3 patients starting 5-FU within 4-5 weeks of recovery. Standard dose 5-FU (2400 mg/m2 over 46 hours) was given to 2 of the 7 patients; the remaining 5 patients received 50% to 80% of the standard dose at the beginning of treatment, but eventually tolerated the standard dose. All patients tolerated 5-FU infusion without experiencing any grade 2 or higher 5-FU induced GI toxicity. Conclusions: Most patients developing severe enterocolitis with CAPE recover fully with appropriate supportive measures. Infusional 5-FU-based regimens appear to be safe in this patient group. Severe CAPE-induced enterocolitis should not preclude the use of infusional 5-FU-based regimens, especially in curative-intent settings such as adjuvant therapy.