[5-FU concentration in blood and tissue of patients with primary lung cancer after oral administration of UFT].

Concentration of FT-207, 5-FU and Uracil in blood and normal lung tissue were estimated for lung cancer patients to whom UFT was orally administered. The histological types of these cases were as follows: 10 squamous cell carcinomas, 10 adenocarcinomas, 2 large cell carcinomas and 1 small cell carcinoma. Average concentration of 5-FU in these tumor tissues was 0.101 +/- 0.107 microgram/g. This was a significantly higher 5-FU concentration in comparison to those in serum and normal lung tissue. Comparison of 5-FU concentration between squamous cell carcinomas and adenocarcinomas showed no significant difference. Between metastasis-positive lymph nodes and metastasis-negative lymph nodes, there was also no significant difference in 5-FU concentration, but there was a significant difference in Uracil concentration. This result showed an effective transition of 5-FU from serum to tumor tissues with oral administration of UFT. It was therefore concluded that UFT would be expected to have an antitumor effect in primary lung cancer patients.