Table 4.

Chemotherapy toxicity

	Cisplatin and fluorouracil: two cycles (n=446*)			Epirubicin, cisplatin, and capecitabine: four cycles (n=441*)
	Grade 1–2	Grade 3	Grade 4	Grade 1–2	Grade 3	Grade 4
Neutropenia	102 (23%)	57 (13%)	17 (4%)	119 (27%)	79 (18%)	22 (5%)
Deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism	5 (1%)	4 (1%)	5 (1%)	11 (2%)	8 (2%)	11 (2%)
Vomiting	116 (26%)	20 (4%)	0	177 (40%)	26 (6%)	0
Nausea	245 (55%)	16 (4%)	0	282 (64%)	27 (6%)	0
Diarrhoea	103 (23%)	6 (1%)	0	132 (30%)	33 (7%)	3 (1%)
Plantar–palmar erythrodysesthesia	27 (6%)	0	0	169 (38%)	37 (8%)	1 (<1%)
Stomatitis	212 (48%)	25 (6%)	0	199 (45%)	7 (2%)	0
Infection or febrile neutropenia	5 (1%)	2 (<1%)	1 (<1%)	6 (1%)	14 (3%)	0
Cardiac toxicity	13 (3%)	1 (<1%)	1 (<1%)	17 (4%)	2 (<1%)	1 (<1%)
Peripheral neuropathy	27 (6%)	1 (<1%)	0	103 (23%)	3 (1%)	0
Loss of taste	147 (33%)	2 (<1%)	0	180 (41%)	1 (<1%)	0
Thrombocytopenia	28 (6%)	2 (<1%)	0	32 (7%)	0	1 (<1%)
Renal toxicity	28 (6%)	2 (<1%)	0	37 (8%)	1 (<1%)	0
Tinnitus	86 (19%)	2 (<1%)	0	71 (16%)	0	0
Liver toxicity	20 (4%)	0	0	33 (7%)	2 (<1%)	0
Alopecia	84 (19%)	0	0	314 (71%)	0	0
Other toxicity	274 (61%)	36 (8%)	3 (1%)	300 (68%)	60 (14%)	7 (2%)

Data are n (%).

^*Two patients in each group did not receive any chemotherapy, and another three patients in each group did not provide any toxicity data. If some toxicity data were provided, any missing toxicity data at that cycle are assumed to indicate that toxicity did not occur. One patient in the epirubicin, cisplatin, and capecitabine group died of cerebrovascular incident (reported as other toxicity).