Accelerated Chemotherapy for Early Breast Cancer
Author Information
Author(s): Jones R L, Walsh G, Ashley S, Chua S, Agarwal R, O'Brien M, Johnston S, Smith I E
Primary Institution: Royal Marsden NHS Trust
Hypothesis
Accelerated (dose-dense) chemotherapy may increase the efficacy of cancer chemotherapy without increasing toxicity.
Conclusion
Accelerated AC and EC with pegfilgrastim are safe and feasible regimens in the treatment of early breast cancer with less neutropenia than conventional 3 weekly schedules.
Supporting Evidence
- Significantly more grade 3/4 day one neutropenia was seen with standard compared to accelerated regimens.
- Falls in left ventricular ejection fraction were not increased with accelerated treatment.
- Accelerated regimens were well tolerated with fewer serious adverse events.
Takeaway
This study looked at two ways to give chemotherapy to women with early breast cancer. Giving it more often helped reduce some side effects.
Methodology
Patients were randomised to one of four arms receiving either standard or accelerated chemotherapy regimens.
Limitations
The study was not powered to detect differences in efficacy.
Participant Demographics
Median age was 50 years, with a mix of premenopausal and postmenopausal women.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.01
Statistical Significance
p=0.01
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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