Metastatic anal cancer is a rare disease in the Western hemisphere and current treatment modalities are not effective. In
this study, patients with advanced epithelial cancer of the anal canal received MAP followed by Bleomycin and CCNU upon progression
of disease. Twelve out of twenty eligible patients had a partial response 60%, (95% CI {36% −81%}). No complete responses
were observed. The median survival was 15 months (95% CI {6–20} months). The median time to progression or death was 8 months
(95% CI {4–9 months}). Toxicities were moderate and tolerable with routine supportive care; there were 2 cases of grade 3
vomiting, 2 cases of respiratory distress (one grade 1 and one grade 3), one case each of grade 3 leg cramps and cardiac arrhythmia.
Of particular note were 7 cases of grade 3 hematologic toxicity. Two patients had grade 4 leukopenia and thrombocytopenia,
respectively, that resolved without sequelae. The combination therapy of MAP followed by Bleomycin and CCNU for patients with
advanced anal cancer, not amenable to radiotherapy or surgery, results in a moderate objective response but with moderate
toxicities. This regimen and sequence is worthy of further study especially in combination with colony stimulating factors,
however, its tolerability may be most applicable for patients who have had minimal prior therapy.
Keywords Anal cancer - Mitomycin-C - Adriamycin - Cisplatin - Bleomycin - CCNU - Phase II
This study was conducted by the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (Robert L. Comis, MD, Chair) and supported in part by Public
Health Service grants CA14958, CA23318, CA13650, CA25988, CA15488, CA 66636, CA21115 from the National Cancer Institute, National
Institutes of Health and the Department of Health and Human Services. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors
and do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Cancer Institute.