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Abstract
Objective The introduction of 5-HT3 receptor antagonists greatly reduced the problems associated with nausea and vomiting immediately after cancer chemotherapy. However, delayed nausea and vomiting is still a major problem and the underlying mechanism is obscure. Material and methods We studied the effect of cisplatin-containing combination chemotherapy in 14 ovarian cancer patients on the levels of gastrin and a panel of other hormones as well as glucose and prostaglandin F2α. Blood samples were obtained once daily in the morning before chemotherapy and for 4 days after chemotherapy. Results Concentrations of many hormones including gastrin were generally high. A pronounced increase in plasma insulin levels occurred on the day after chemotherapy accompanied by a modest increase in plasma glucose concentrations. Minor increases were observed for gastrin, oxytocin and prostaglandin F2α. In contrast, a transient decrease after chemotherapy was observed for motilin. Plasma cortisol decreased markedly after chemotherapy as expected since betamethasone was given as an antiemetic prophylaxis. Certain trends concerning the relationship between some hormones and nausea and vomiting were noted. A high plasma gastrin concentration before chemotherapy was related to delayed vomiting. Relative day-to-day variability of cholecystokinin tended to correlate positively with delayed nausea, whereas an inverse relationship was observed for gastrin variability. Conclusions Changes in hormone plasma levels were found but only few could be distinguished as possible mediators of delayed nausea and vomiting.