A phase II trial of homoharringtonine and caracemide in the treatment of patients with advanced large bowel cancer

Twenty-four previously untreated, ambulatory patients with advanced colorec tal carcinoma were treated with either caracemide (11 patients) or homoharr ingtonine (13 patients). No objective responses were observed in any of the treatment cohorts. Caracemide was well tolerated with the exception of one death due to sepsis. On the homoharringtonine arm one patient died of pulm onary sepsis, one patient experienced grade 4 leukopenia requiring more tha n 4 weeks of recovery, and an additional patient developed grade 4 renal fa ilure. These severe and unexpected complications caused early termination o f accrual to the homoharringtonine arm of the study. These agents have no a ctivity in the treatment of advanced colorectal carcinoma.