Docetaxel in the management of patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Abstract

The taxanes play a significant role in the treatment of various solid tumors of epithelial origin. Docetaxel is the most extensively studied taxane in prospective head and neck cancer trials and has been investigated as induction chemotherapy or in combination with radiotherapy in locally advanced squamous cell carcinomas of the head and neck (HNSCC) and as palliation in recurrent or metastatic disease. The data in locally advanced disease are particularly compelling. Three recently reported randomized trials, carried out in patients with locally advanced disease who were receiving induction chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy, demonstrated that adding docetaxel to the standard induction regimen of cisplatin/5-fluorouracil (PF) significantly improved survival compared with PF alone, without significantly increasing toxicity. On the basis of these trials, docetaxel/PF (TPF) has become the current standard induction regimen and TPF-based sequential therapy can be considered a standard treatment alternative to chemoradiotherapy alone in patients with locally advanced HNSCC. This review article discusses the current developments of docetaxel-based chemotherapy and the optimal use of this agent in patients with HNSCC.

Keywords::

• chemoradiotherapy
• docetaxel
• head and neck
• induction chemotherapy
• larynx preservation
• locally advanced
• metastatic
• recurrent
• squamous cell carcinoma

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Jacques Bernier has been a member of the Advisory Board for Sanofi-Aventis. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.