A retrospective paired study: efficacy and toxicity of nimotuzumab versus cisplatin concurrent with radiotherapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma

BACKGROUND: To compare efficacy and toxicity of nimotuzumab versus cisplatin (CDDP) concurrent with intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC). METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients with NPC from September 2008 to November 2013. The synchronous regimens included h-R3/RT (nimotuzumab and radiotherapy) one time per week for 6–8 weeks and CDDP/RT (cisplatin and radiotherapy) every three weeks for 2–3 cycles. All patients in our analysis completed the planned IMRT and received TPF (docetaxel + cisplatin + 5-fluorouracil) neoadjuvant chemotherapy for two cycles. RESULTS: Among the 302 NPC patients who were treated definitively with TPF neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by IMRT concurrent with nimotuzumab or cisplatin at West China Hospital Sichuan University, 52 patients received h-R3/RT with complete clinical and follow-up data. Based on age, sex and tumor stage, 104 eligible patients were propensity-matched, with 52 patients in each treatment group (h-R3/RT and CDDP/RT). With a median follow-up of 50 months, the 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) rates for the h-R3/RT vs. CDDP/RT treatment groups were 63.9% vs. 81.4% (p = 0.024) and 58.0% vs. 80.6% (p = 0.028), respectively. The h-R3/RT patients experienced less leukopenia and milder nausea and vomiting. In our sub-analysis, for stage II patients, no significant differences were found in OS and PFS, whereas milder nausea and vomiting were found in the h-R3/RT group (p = 0.046). Moreover, for patients older than 60 years, there were no statistically significant differences in OS and PFS, whereas milder nausea and vomiting was observed in the h-R3/RT group (p = 0.020). CONCLUSIONS: Although CDDP/RT remains the preferred choice for most patients with NPC, h-R3/RT may be a treatment option for the patients with stage II, older than sixty years old, and who are intolerable to cisplatin. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12885-016-2974-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.