A phase II single institution single arm prospective study with paclitaxel, ifosfamide and cisplatin (TIP) as first-line chemotherapy in high-risk germ cell tumor patients with more than ten years follow-up and retrospective correlation with ERCC1, Topoisomerase 1, 2A, p53 and HER-2 expression.

Purpose: One half of high-risk germ cell tumor (HRGCT) patients relapse after standard chemotherapy. This phase II study evaluated prospectively the toxicity and efficacy in first-line of the paclitaxel-ifosfamide-cisplatin combination (TIP) in HRGCT patients and tried to identify biomarkers that may allow patient-tailored treatments.

Methods: Between October 1997- September 2000, 28 chemo-naive HRGCT patients were enrolled. Patients received 4 cycles of TIP (paclitaxel 175 mg/m(2) day 1/; ifosfamide 1.2 g/m(2)/day, days 1-5; Mesna 1.2 g/m(2)/day, days 1-5; and cisplatin 20 mg/m(2)/day, days 1-5 every 3 weeks). A non-randomized comparison was made between HRGCT patients treated in the same period with first-line TIP and bleomycin-etoposide-cisplatin (BEP) (28 patients vs 20). In 17 HRGCT patients treated between 1998-2006, ERCC1, Topoisomerase 1 and 2A, p53 and HER-2 expression was retrospectively analysed by immunohistochemistry (IHC) (7 patients with TIP, 10 with BEP), and correlations were made with response to chemotherapy and survival.

Results: With a median follow-up of 72 months [range 48+...89+], 5-year disease free survival (DFS) was 55%, with 95% CI 36-72, and the overall survival (OS) was 63%, with 95% CI 44-78. In June 2015, with a median follow-up of 196.47 months (range 177.30-209.27) (>15 years), 12 [%?] patients were alive and disease-free, and 16 [%?] had died (12 specific causes). There was no significant correlation between the expression of ERCC1, Topoisomerase 1 and 2A, HER-2 and p53 and response to treatment.

Conclusion: Long-term follow-up showed no difference in OS between TIP vs BEP as first-line therapy. Both regimens had mild toxicity.