Abstract
To test the role of serotonin in chemotherapy-induced nausea and emesis, ten cancer patients were pretreated with the serotonin synthesis inhibitor para-chlorophenylalanine (PCPA). PCPA (2 g 8 hourly for 2 or 3 days prior to cisplatin) reduced the spontaneous urinary excretion of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), inhibited the increase in urinary 5-HIAA induced by cisplatin and markedly attenuated the acute period of nausea and vomiting associated with the cytotoxic drug. These results indicate that gastrointestinal serotonin mediates cisplatin-induced emesis and that the amount of serotonin released by cisplatin is a major factor in determining the severity of the acute period of emesis experienced by the patient.
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Alfieri, A., Cubeddu, L. Treatment with para-chlorophenylalanine antagonises the emetic response and the serotonin-releasing actions of cisplatin in cancer patients. Br J Cancer 71, 629–632 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1995.123
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1995.123
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