BIOAVAILABILITY OF SUBCUTANEOUS 5-FLUOROURACIL - A CASE-REPORT

The optimal schedule for the administration of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) i n the management of advanced colorectal cancer remains to be determine d. It has been suggested that this drug may be given by the subcutaneo us route and that following a short infusion the bioavailability is si milar to that observed after intravenous administration. We report the results we obtained in a patient treated with an intravenous bolus of 5-FU followed by a 22-h subcutaneous infusion. In this patient the bi oavailability of 5-FU given by subcutaneous infusion was 0.94. The ste ady-state plasma levels of 5-FU reached during subcutaneous infusion w ere comparable with those achieved during intravenous infusion. Follow ing four cycles of subcutaneous therapy, painless blistering was noted at the infusion sites, which healed following the cessation of subcut aneous therapy. Further studies are required to evaluate this route of therapy as an alternative to protracted intravenous therapy. The main dose-limiting side effect appears to be local skin toxicity.