An anticancer compound is disclosed which is represented by the formula
wherein one of R1 and R2 is a phenyl-lower alkyl optionally having a substituent, phenyl-lower alkenyl or naphthyl-lower alkyl, the other of R1 and R2 is hydrogen or acyl, and R3 is hydrogen, acyl or tetrahydrofuranyl, or represented by the formula
wherein Rx is an optionally substituted pyridyl, Y is arylene and a is a known 5-fluorouracil derivative residue which can be converted to 5-fluorouracil in vivo and which is linked to the carbonyl by an ester or amide linkage.