Korean J Pediatr Hematol Oncol.  2003 Apr;10(1):115-120.

Successful Response of Oral Etoposide for Refractory Neuroblastoma

• Kim YM
• Kim BJ
• Kim JP
• Lee YH

Abstract

Intensive chemotherapy with or without stem cell rescue has become widely accepted for treatment of neuroblastoma because increased dose-intensity correlates with improved response rates. For neuroblastoma that is resistant to intensive chemotherapy, further use of high-dose therapy is unlikely to be beneficial. For disease that recurs after myeloablative consolidation, high-dose salvage therapy may not be feasible because of poor bone marrow reserve and may not be justified in view of its morbidity in the absence of a realistic chance for cure. One treatment option in these difficult clinical settings is chronic oral administration of low-dose etoposide. However, there has been a few clinical reports for the experience of oral etoposide for refractory neuroblastoma. We now present 2 cases of successful response of oral etoposide for refractory neuroblastoma.

Keyword

Neuroblastoma; Oral etoposide

MeSH Terms

Administration, Oral
Bone Marrow
Drug Therapy
Etoposide*
Neuroblastoma*
Salvage Therapy
Stem Cells
Etoposide