Dr. Ilson on Chemotherapy in Advanced Gastric Cancer

David H. Ilson, MD, PhD, medical oncologist, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the use of chemotherapy in advanced gastric cancer.

Novel agents have been evaluated in gastric cancer, says Ilson. However, chemotherapy remains a frontline standard of care in the advanced setting. Typically, regimens such as FOLFOX, which consist of a fluoropyrimidine and a platinum-based agent, are given, says Ilson.

Past research efforts have suggested that the addition of taxane chemotherapy to docetaxel, cisplatin, and 5-fluorouracil might improve patient outcomes. However, data from a large Japanese trial showed that the addition of docetaxel to fluoropyrimidine and platinum did not result in better outcomes. As such, fluoropyrimidine and platinum-based chemotherapy continues to be the standard of care, concludes Ilson.