C. Heidelberger et al left great gifts to us. Approximately 50 years have elapsed since their discovery of 5-FU in 1957 before eventually elucidating the mechanisms by which the drug exerts its pharmacological actions and provokes its adverse reactions. Namely, 5-FU is a typical antimetabolite with strong time dependency, and continuous venous infusion(CVI) is considered to be its optimal regimen. The following facts may be mentioned to explain why such a long period of time has been spent to reach this level of research: 1) 5-FU, when administered to the living individual, is mostly inactivated by hepatic catabolic enzymes without delay and is then excreted in the urine, thus making it difficult to precisely analyze the relationship of blood 5-FU concentrations with concentration persistence, anticancer activity, and adverse reactions; and 2) unlike other anticancer agents, an antimetabolite 5-FU separately generates metabolites which show anticancer activity and adverse reactions, as well as metabolites which show adverse reactions only. For the last 30 years, we paid attention especially to 5-FU among chemotherapeutic agents for cancer and have sought for a long-lasting therapeutic modality which maintains quality of life of the patient and patient compliance by considering the balancing between its effects and adverse reactions. Consequently, we concretized an innovative therapeutic drug, TS-1 (S-1). We have a long history of research before developing S-1, which is represented by a series of investigations consisting in the developments of Futrafur (FT)--an oral anticancer agent of a 5-FU derivative (prodrug)-in 1970 subsequent to the above discovery of 5-FU, of UFT(FT: Ura=1 : 4) in 1976, and of S-1 in 1999. To date, we took the initiative in the world to devise S-1, the first self-rescuing concept(SRC)-based anticancer agent with dual actions, i.e., enhancement of pharmacological actions of 5-FU and reduction of its adverse reactions, by making use of the biochemical and enzymological properties of 5-FU and by combining FT, which is gradually converted to 5-FU in the body, with a 5-FU's effect-enhancing substance and a 5-FU's adverse reaction-reducing substance. S-1 is an oral anticancer agent in capsule, in which the following 2 modulators for 5-FU are combined to FT: one is CDHP(5-chloro-2,4-dihydroxypyridine) which increases blood concentrations and enhances pharmacological actions of 5-FU by potently inhibiting the degradation of 5-FU; and another is Oxo(potassium oxonate) which is localized in the mucosa of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract after oral administration and reduces GI toxicities provoked by 5-FU. S-1 is an oral anticancer agent in which these 3 components, FT, CDHP, and Oxo, are combined at a molar ratio of 1 : 0.4 : 1. Our conception to develop an SRC-based therapeutic drug and the preclinical concepts validated by numerous basic studies were demonstrated also in the clinical trials. In January 1999, S-1 was approved for the treatment of advanced and recurrent gastric cancers through the priority review system. From 2001 to 2005, S-1 was approved for the treatment of head and neck cancer, colon cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, and breast cancer. S-1 has been applied to acquire its expanded indications for the treatment of pancreatic cancer and biliary tract cancer. We are confident that the combined regimen of S-1 with other anticancer agents and with other therapeutic modalities will contribute to the routine medical practice of cancer treatment in the future.

A 38-year-man developed diffuse erythema 3 days after the administration of 2-chlorodeoxyadenosine (cladribine or 2-CdA) and many other drugs for hairy cell leukemia (HCL). Patch-testing and scratch patch-testing showed positive reactions for clindamycin (10%, 30%) at 24 hours and 48 hours. Furthermore, provocation-testing showed positive reactions for sulfamethoxazole.trimethoprim, allopurinol, fluconazole, so our diagnosis was erythroderma-type drug eruption due to clindamycin, sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim, allopurinol, fluconazole. Cutaneous side-effects associated with cladribine have seldom been described in cases of HCL. Our case suggests that there is a relationship between the drug hypersensitivity and the prolonged suppressed CD4 cell levels caused by cladribine.

The purpose of this study was to assess patient participation in cancer therapy and the sharing of patient information among the medical care team (physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and especially patients). We monitored the side effects of cancer chemotherapy with patients, and developed two support tools: One scored the points of subjective symptoms (fatigue, anorexia, nausea, etc) by patients, and the other recorded objective symptoms (clinical examination data) by pharmacists. It is most important that they attend each patient at their bedside. At this time, the trial was evaluated by questionnaire survey by inpatients receiving cancer chemotherapy (n=15). As a result, all patients (15/15) responded that this trial was necessary. This trial addressed the following: 1) increased communication between patients and medical staff concerning side effects (14/15), 2) increased interest in side effects (10/15), 3) when a patient tells medical staff about side effects, they act on it (10/15). None of the patients felt inconvenienced by scoring every day (0/15), or anxiety about side effects (0/15). Furthermore, all patients (15/15) responded that "participation of pharmacists in cancer chemotherapy" was necessary. This trial revealed no problems and suggested that patients related to the center of medical care. We should be careful in interpreting results of this small sized trial; however, the following conclusions should be reached: 1) introduction of monitoring side effects of cancer chemotherapy with patients, 2) develop communication among the medical care team.

Approximately 70% of patients with advanced prostate cancer have bone metastases, which are associated with considerable skeletal morbidity, accompanied by severe bone pain that requires narcotics or palliative radiation therapy, pathological fractures, spinal cord compression and hypercalcemia of malignancy (HCM), which consequentiy lower the patient's quality of life. Bisphosphonates, potent inhibitors of osteoclast activity and survival, therefore inhibiting osteoclast-mediated bone absorption, transiently palliative bone pain and decrease analgesic usage in patients who have hormone-refractory prostate cancer (HRPC) with bone metastases. Recently, a randomized controlled trial showed that a third-generation bisphosphonate, zoledronic acid reduced bone pain and skeletal-related events (SREs). In this manuscript, we reviwed the efficacy of bisphosphonates in HRPC with bone metastases from several clinical studies and discuss treatment of advanced prostate cancer with bisphosphonates.

A 78-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because of tarry stools. A gastric stromal tumor with liver metastasis was diagnosed. Treatment with imatinib mesilate was begun in a dose of 400 mg daily. After 1 month, the primary tumor showed a partial response; the response of the liver metastasis was stable disease. However, grade 2 edema, leukocytopenia, and anemia developed, and the dose of imatinib mesilate was reduced to 200 mg daily. The adverse reactions resolved promptly, and a partial response of both the primary tumor and liver metastasis to imatinib mesilate has been maintained for 28 months. Strategies for lowering the dose of imatinib mesilate are reviewed.

Dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) is a reducing enzyme for fluoropyrimidine which is a widely-used anti-cancer agent, and its deficiency leads to serious toxicities. We report a rare patient with a DPD deficiency. A 39-year-old man was suspected to have a gastric cancer recurrence from the elevation of CEA. Although TS-1 was administered for five days, it was stopped due to the development of grade 2 anorexia and nausea. Although we administered UFT at his request after a one-month drug rest, grade 1 stomatorrhagia besides the former adverse events developed after five days. Therefore he discontinued it and was admitted to our hospital. After 19 days, he died from multiple brain hemorrhage despite the intensive therapies. We considered that the congenital DPD deficiency caused the development of these adverse events because the DPD value was less than 5 pmol/mg/min in mononuclear cells of peripheral blood.

Capecitabine, an oral fluoropyrimidine carbamate, is adopted worldwide. As the treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer, capecitabine showed at least comparable efficacy with a favorable safety profile to bolus 5-FU/LV. In a large phase III trial (Xeloda Adjuvant Chemotherapy Trial: X-ACT), as the adjuvant treatment of patients with resected stage III colon cancer, capecitabine showed at least comparable disease-free survival, overall survival, and relapse-free survival with a favorable safety profile to bolus 5-FU/LV. Additionally, capecitabine-based combination regimens with oxaliplatin or irinotecan are now under evaluation. In phase II studies, capecitabine has shown the promising results in combination therapy. In Japan, capecitabine has been evaluated since 1994. In a recent phase II study, which evaluated the global dose as first-line treatment for metastatic colorectal cancer, the response rate was 35% (95% CI 23.1-48.4). The median time to disease progression was 169 days and the median overall survival was 617 days. Hand-foot syndrome (HFS), a characteristic adverse event of capecitabine, was observed in 73.3% of the patients, but the grade 3/4 was observed in 13.3% of the patients and only one patient discontinued the treatment due to HFS. An immediate approval of capecitabine in Japan is expected.

Some large-scale clinical investigations on gefitinib-induced lung injury have been performed,which have much new information about anticancer drug-induced lung injuries and indicated significant problems in the development of new anticancer drugs. Analysis of gefitinib-induced lung injury revealed varying patterns of clinical features, ethnic differences in onset, risk factors for development and diagnostic difficulties in anticancer drug-induced lung injuries. Furthermore, we realized again underlying problems in the process of developing new anticancer drugs and the importance of post-marketing surveillance. We must elucidate the mechanism of anticancer drug-induced lung injuries to manage them effectively.