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Are chemotherapy regimens effective in the treatment of carcinoid tumors?
- Cytotoxic chemotherapy has yielded disappointing results in patients with carcinoid syndrome.
- Etoposide–cisplatin combination therapy is the most commonly used regimen for poorly differentiated carcinoid tumors.
- Everolimus, an antagonist of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGF-R) antagonists, such as vatalanib, sunitinib, sorafenib, and bevazuzimab, are also under investigation.
- Other agents that have shown limited benefit include streptozotocin, 5-fluorouracil, lomustine, doxorubicin, and dacarbazine.
What other treatments may be effective for palliation or prolongation of survival in patients with carcinoid syndrome?
- Hepatic resection is an option in patients with focal liver metastases.
- Other approaches include hepatic artery embolization, chemoembolization, 90-Y microsphere radioembolization, and peptide receptor radioligand therapy.
