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BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy with paclitaxel and carboplatin 3-weekly is active in many tumors. Major toxicities are myelosuppression and neurotoxicity. Weekly administration of taxanes allows high dose intensity with reduced toxicity. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 131 patients with solid tumors were treated as outpatients with paclitaxel 75 mg/m(2) and carboplatin AUC 2-3 days 1, 8, 15 every 4 weeks irrespective of pretreatment and partly in neoadjuvant and multimodal concepts. RESULTS: 125 patients (median age 58 years) were evaluable for response and toxicity, of whom 45 suffered esophageal carcinoma (19 patients in neoadjuvant treatment) and 31 non-small cell lung cancer. 49 patients were pretreated. 23 patients received concomitant radiotherapy of esophagus or lung in doses ranging from 40 to 60 Gy. We observed a low hematologic toxicity with 15.2% grade-III/IV leukopenia/granulocytopenia and 3.2% thrombocytopenia grade III/IV. Neurotoxicity grade II was reported in 14 patients. Main toxicity with radiotherapy was esophagitis grade II or III in 7 out of 23 patients. Overall response rate was 54.2%. 5 out of 19 patients treated neoadjuvantly for esophageal cancer reached a pathological complete response. CONCLUSIONS: Weekly paclitaxel and carboplatin is safe and feasible in outpatients and a high dose intensity can be achieved. The favorable toxicity profile allows treatment of elderly and pretreated patients. Response rate is high including pathological complete responses and responses appear quickly, making this therapy most suitable for multimodal and neoadjuvant treatments.