Platinum-based Doublet Chemotherapy for Advanced Gastric Cancer with Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation

Background Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) is a rare complication of advanced gastric cancer (AGC). Despite reports of the efficacy of chemotherapy for AGC with DIC, little is known of platinum-based doublet therapy. Patients and methods We conducted a single-institute, retrospective chart review of 500 consecutive chemotherapy-naive patients with advanced gastric adenocarcinoma (recurrent or metastatic) from November 2010 to November 2015. Results Six patients were diagnosed with AGC with DIC (1.2%); five (1.0%; 3 men, 2 women) received platinum-based doublet chemotherapy. All patients exhibited improved DIC and thrombocytopenia and survived for >100 days (range=114-313) with no therapy-related mortality. Grade ≥3 adverse effects included neutropenia, anemia, hyponatremia, catheter-related infection and diarrhea (maximum: 2 patients each). Conclusion Fluoropyrimidine plus platinum combination therapy was effective against DIC and yielded acceptable survival outcomes. Combination chemotherapy should be considered as a primary therapy for AGC with DIC.