The antiemetic effect of methylprednisolone in patients treated with cis-platinum (CDDP) for advanced testicular germ cell tumors.

In cis-platinum treatment, nausea and vomiting are very serious side-effects and patients may be reluctant to accept or continue therapy. The purpose of this study is to verify the antiemetic effect of methylprednisolone in patients treated with cis-platinum in combination with other chemotherapeutic agents. Methylprednisolone in doses of 100 mg/m2 i.v. per 5 consecutive days was given to 33 patients receiving cis-platinum combination chemotherapies (134 cycles) at the Istituto Nazionale Tumori of Milan for advanced germ cell tumors of the testis. Seventy percent of cycles were partially or completely protected from vomiting. Only minor side-effects caused by methylprednisolone were observed. From this study it appears that methylprednisolone is an effective antiemetic drug in patients receiving cis-platinum combination chemotherapy.