HPLC determination of encapsulated 5-fluorouracil in lyoiphilized liposomes

5-fluorouracil is used as an antineoplastic agent in the treatment of several malignant neoplasm, alone or in a combination with other antineoplastic drugs. Due to the difficulties in delivery of antineoplastic drugs on the target place, serious adverse events and hazardous effects, recent advanced researches are focused on the topical colloidal systems as drug carriers for the chemical substance. Colloidal drug carriers, as liposomes, can improve the therapeutic effects of the chemical substances by modifying their distribution and increasing their efficacy. The aim of this study was to develop HPLC method for quantitative determination of encapsulated 5-fluorouracil in lyophilized liposomes. HPLC method was developed using the following chromatographic conditions: column- LiChrospher 60, RP Selected B, 125 x 4 mm, 5 µm; mobile phase - 0.02 M phosphate buffer pH 4.7; flow rate of 1.0 ml/min; column temperature 20 ºC; UV - detection at 266 nm; injection volume - 20 µl. Linear relationship was obtained in the concentration range of 10-100 µg/ml, r=0.9999. Accuracy of the method was confirmed by standard addition method. Determination of encapsulated 5-fluorouracil in lyophilized liposomes was carried out with RSD of 0.71 %. The proposed method could be used for rapid and precise quality control of lyophilized liposomes with 5-fluorouracil, used as drugdelivery system, prepared for further incorporation in pharmaceutical dosage form-gel

Observational Study of Clinical Practice in Patients with Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma in Greece

Background. During the last decade, significant improvement was made in systemic therapy of pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC). The impact of this progress in everyday clinical practice has not been fully described yet. The aim of the study was to investigate the pattern followed by Greek Medical Oncologists regarding the treatment of patients with PAC. Methods. This observational, noninterventional multicenter study recorded clinical data from the files of 200 active patients (alive and under treatment or follow-up) for a two-year period (November 2015 until November 2017) from 20 oncology centers around Greece. Results. In total, 51 (25.5%) patients underwent radical surgical resection of PAC, and 40 (78.4%) of them received adjuvant and 1 (2.0%) neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The median time to recurrence was 7.9 months, and median overall survival (OS), 20.2 months. First-line chemotherapy was administered to 193 (96.5%) patients. The majority of patients were treated with the combination of nab-paclitaxel-gemcitabine (NPG), 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, irinotecan, oxaliplatin (FOLFIRINOX), or gemcitabine monotherapy. Of them, 39.5% responded to the treatment. Median OS and PFS were 14.1 months and 7.0 months, respectively. Second-line treatment was administered to 112 patients. The majority received NPG, FOLFIRINOX/capecitabine, oxaliplatin, irinotecan (CAPOXIRI), or 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, oxaliplatin (FOLFOX)/capecitabine, oxaliplatin (CAPOX). Median OS with second-line treatment was 8.6 months, and median PFS, 5.5 months. The most common chemotherapy sequences were NPG as first-line followed by FOLFIRINOX/CAPOXIRI as second-line, NPG followed by FOLFOX/CAPOX, NPG followed by other regimens, and FOLFIRINOX/CAPOXIRI followed by NPG. Conclusion. This study described the significant improvement in prognosis of PAC patients receiving palliative chemotherapy and the relatively high rate of receipt of second-line chemotherapy, according to real-world data. However, due to the nonrandomized nature of the study, any comparison between different chemotherapy regimens should be regarded with caution