Salvage chemotherapy with gemcitabine and oxaliplatin in heavily pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer: a multicenter phase II study.

Purpose: It was the aim of this study to evaluate the activity and tolerance of gemcitabine and oxaliplatin in pretreated metastatic breast cancer patients.

Methods: Thirty-one patients who had disease relapse or progression after completion of an anthracycline- and/or taxane-based front-line regimen were treated with gemcitabine 1,500 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8 as a 30-min intravenous infusion and oxaliplatin 130 mg/m(2) on day 8 as a 4-hour intravenous infusion, in cycles of 21 days.

Results: Complete response occurred in 1 patient (3%) and partial response in 4 patients (13%) (overall response rate 16%; 95% confidence interval 3.