CHEMOTHERAPY ASSOCIATED ANEMIA IN PATIENTS WITH SOLID TUMOR

Chemotherapy induced anemia is delayed toxicities of chemotherapy. Chemotherapy associated anemia was studied in eighty two patients. Patients divided 4 groups according to dominate chemotherapy drugs as follows fluorouracil (FU) 29 patients (35.4%), anthracycline 28 (34.1%), cisplatin 17 (20.7%), and taxane (9.8%). Median age was 59 years (range 35-80). Forty patients (48.8%) were female, 42 (51.2%) male. Patient's characteristcs were similar between groups. The median hemoglobin (Hb) level before chemotherapy was 12.3g/dl (8.8-16.7) and the median haemotocrit level was %36.5 (%27.7-49.1). The median Hb levels, before chemotherapy, were similar between the four groups. Patients had median 11.5 g/dl Hb level after chemotherapy. The difference between the Hb levels before and after chemotherapy was statistically significant (p=0.001). The decrease in Hb levels was statistically significant in the cisplatin and anthracycline groups but it was not significant in the FU and taxane groups. Seventeen patients (20.7%) had Hb levels under the 11.0 gr/dl before chemotherapy and this proportion was increased to 31 patients (%37.8) after chemotherapy. Chemotherapy associated anemia is frequenty and especially accompanies the protocols including cisplatin.

Keywords: Chemotherapy, anemia, cisplatin