There is strong and confirmatory evidence from two large randomized phase III trials to support paclitaxel-cisplatin as the new standard regimen for treatment of patients with advanced ovarian cancer.

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Two independent and consecutive randomized clinical trials, conducted by the American Gynecological Oncology Group and by an European-Canadian Intergroup, have shown superiority, in clinical response rate, progression-free survival, and overall survival, of a cisplatin-paclitaxel regimen over cisplatin-cyclophosphamide given as first-line chemotherapy for women with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer. The results of these studies, published with a median follow-up of about 3 years, have been updated with a 6.5-year follow-up: In each case, an 11% absolute gain in survival favoring the paclitaxel arm is shown; this advantage remains both statistically and clinically significant and supports a role for paclitaxel in frontline chemotherapy for advanced ovarian cancer.

Eleven patients with uterine adenosarcoma diagnosed between 1970 and 1995 were evaluated according to DNA ploidy, S-phase fraction, p53 and mdm-2 expression, and traditional clinical and pathological prognostic factors, such as tumor stage, grade and mitotic index. DNA flow cytometric analysis and immunohistochemical staining for p53 and mdm-2 were performed on paraffin-embedded archival tissue from the uterine tumors. The patients ranged in age from 41 to 90 years (median, 76 years). Only one patient was premenopausal at the time of diagnosis and five (45%) were nulliparous. One patient had received previous pelvic irradiation for anal squamous carcinoma. Six of the tumors (55%) were pure adenosarcoma and five (45%) were adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth. Nine patients had a stage I tumor and two had a stage II tumor. Among the six adenosarcomas we found three DNA diploid tumors, two DNA aneuploid tumors, and one DNA multiploid tumor. All adenosarcomas had an S-phase fraction less than 10%, except one that was not assessable. None was p53 positive and only one overexpressed mdm-2. All five adenosarcomas with sarcomatous overgrowth were DNA aneuploid, three (60%) had an S-phase fraction > 10%, two (40%) were p53 positive, and one (20%) overexpressed mdm-2. Five of the eleven patients suffered recurrences, and three (60%) of these developed lung metastases. During the observation period four (36%) patients (2 adenosarcomas and 2 adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth) died of disease, three patients died of intercurrent disease without recurrence, and the remaining four are alive with no evidence of disease. The overall five-year survival rate for all stages was 69%; for patients with AS it was 80%, while for those with adenosarcoma with sarcomatous overgrowth it was 50%. There were no variables which correlated with survival. In conclusion, we found hat the typical adenosarcoma had a tendency to be of low stage, have a lower mitotic rate and an S-phase fraction <10%. On the other hand, adenosarcomas with sarcomatous overgrowth were of high grade, had a high mitotic rate, and were DNA aneuploid with an S-phase fraction >10%. None of the variables studied correlated with survival. Tumors that were p53-positive or overexpressed mdm-2 did not behave worse than their negative counterpart. All patients who recurred with distant metastases died of disease.

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