Neoadjuvant chemotherapy in locally advanced cancer of the cervix - Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia

PURPOSE: to evaluate neoadjuvant chemotherapy in locally advanced cervical cancer as to its acceptability, tolerability, toxicity, surgical complications, operability, response rate, and overall survival in 5 years. METHODS: sixty women with locally advanced cervical cancer (stages IIB and IIIB), who were submitted to neoadjuvant chemotherapy, were included. All patients were treated with doxorubicin-bleomycin-cisplatin. Those who had a good response, allowing a surgical approach, underwent the Wertheim-Meigs procedure. After surgery, they were submitted to pelvic radiotherapy. Those that could not be submitted to surgery after chemotherapy underwent total radiotherapy. RESULTS: the average follow-up was 108 months, and 80% of the patients had an overall response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy. In the IIB group, the response rate was 100%, and in the IIIB group it was 60%. The operability rate after neoadjuvant chemotherapy was 65%. The overall survival in 5 years was 62%. Comparing the operated group (n=34) with the nonoperated group (n=18), the overall survival in 5 years was 82.14 and 16.67%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: neoadjuvant chemotherapy with doxorubicin-bleomycin-cisplatin for locally advanced cervical cancer is safe, with a low rate of side effects, and allowed a high operability rate.