Chemotherapy Dose Reductions in Palliative Lung Cancer V1.0

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Dose Reductions in Palliative Lung Cancer following an episode of Neutropenia

  • IRAS ID

    242100

  • Contact name

    Khuram Moaz Ahmad Amini

  • Contact email

    khuram.amini@rothgen.nhs.uk

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    0 years, 6 months, 1 days

  • Research summary

    Chemotherapy Induced Neutropenia (CIN) is a well known phenomenon among cancer patients. It poses a significant risk to patients who are more susceptible to opportunistic infections and thus morbidity and mortality. Approximately 50% of patients with a previous history CIN often relapse to a futher episode of neutropenia. It is often managed by using supportive medication like Granulocyte-colony-stimulating-factors (G-CSF), which boost the neutrophil count or applying dose reduction to the chemotherapy. In palliative cancer, G-CSF use is restricted as patients may still relapse to further episodes of neutropenia.

    Evidence suggests that neutropenia is dose related to the chemotherapy and thus an adequate dose reduction can prevent a further episode. However, dose reductions are often dependent on clinicians judgement rather than any clinical evidence or rationale. This has led to an inconstant approach in chemotherapy dose reductions and thus a variation in patient outcome. Lung cancer patients have a high incidence of CIN and subsequently often require a dose reduction. Evaluating the factors responsible for increasing the risk of neutropenia and dose reducing appropriately, will lower further incidences of neutropenia. This will reduce neutropenia related hospital admissions and also improve patient outcome by reducing chemotherapy delays.

    This is a retrospective analysis and will analyse patient factors in conjunction with the applied dose reduction in preventing a further episode of neutropenia.

  • REC name

    Yorkshire & The Humber - Bradford Leeds Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    18/YH/0478

  • Date of REC Opinion

    19 Dec 2018

  • REC opinion

    Favourable Opinion