scholarly journals Chemotherapy-Induced Amenorrhea and Fertility in Women Undergoing Adjuvant Treatment for Breast Cancer

2002 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 466-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan E. Minton ◽  
Pamela N. Munster

Background The majority of women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer have an excellent long-term prognosis, but many will undergo temporary or permanent chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea. Methods While breast cancer is more common in older women, about 1 in 200 women under the age of 40 is at risk to develop breast cancer. Many of these women benefit from chemotherapy but are afraid to risk the opportunity to bear children. The authors review the current studies on the impact of adjuvant chemotherapy on amenorrhea and fertility in women with breast cancer. Results The likelihood of amenorrhea is based on the specific adjuvant chemotherapy regimen administered and the age of the patient. Future childbirth is a viable option for women treated for breast cancer at an early stage. While the use of tamoxifen as a hormonal therapy in premenopausal breast cancer is now the standard of care, no conclusive data confirm the benefit of GnRH agonists in adjuvant therapy after treatment with chemotherapy followed by tamoxifen. Conclusions As more women over the age of 35 consider pregnancy, fertility issues are becoming important areas of investigation for the adjuvant treatment of breast cancer. Whether chemotherapy-induced amenorrhea has a prognostic effect remains unclear, and further studies are warranted.

10.2196/27576 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (9) ◽  
pp. e27576
Author(s):  
Jing Yu ◽  
Jiayi Wu ◽  
Ou Huang ◽  
Xiaosong Chen ◽  
Kunwei Shen

Background Multidisciplinary treatment (MDT) and adjuvant therapy are associated with improved survival rates in breast cancer. However, nonadherence to MDT decisions is common in patients. We developed a smartphone-based app that can facilitate the full-course management of patients after surgery. Objective This study aims to investigate the influence factors of treatment nonadherence and to determine whether this smartphone-based app can improve the compliance rate with MDTs. Methods Patients who had received a diagnosis of invasive breast cancer and had undergone MDT between March 2013 and May 2019 were included. Patients were classified into 3 groups: Pre-App cohort (November 2017, before the launch of the app); App nonused, cohort (after November 2017 but not using the app); and App used cohort (after November 2017 and using the app). Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the factors related to MDT adherence. Compliance with specific adjuvant treatments, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, and targeted therapy, was also evaluated. Results A total of 4475 patients were included, with Pre-App, App nonused, and App used cohorts comprising 2966 (66.28%), 861 (19.24%), and 648 (14.48%) patients, respectively. Overall, 15.53% (695/4475) patients did not receive MDT recommendations; the noncompliance rate ranged from 27.4% (75/273) in 2013 to 8.8% (44/500) in 2019. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that app use was independently associated with adherence to adjuvant treatment. Compared with the patients in the Pre-App cohort, patients in the App used cohort were less likely to deviate from MDT recommendations (odds ratio [OR] 0.61, 95% CI 0.43-0.87; P=.007); no significant difference was found in the App nonused cohort (P=.77). Moreover, app use decreased the noncompliance rate for adjuvant chemotherapy (OR 0.41, 95% CI 0.27-0.65; P<.001) and radiotherapy (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.25-0.96; P=.04), but not for anti-HER2 therapy (P=.76) or endocrine therapy (P=.39). Conclusions This smartphone-based app can increase MDT adherence in patients undergoing adjuvant therapy; this was more obvious for adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Yu ◽  
Jiayi Wu ◽  
Ou Huang ◽  
Xiaosong Chen ◽  
Kunwei Shen

BACKGROUND Multidisciplinary treatment (MDT) and adjuvant therapy are associated with improved survival rates in breast cancer. However, nonadherence to MDT decisions is common in patients. We developed a smartphone-based app that can facilitate the full-course management of patients after surgery. OBJECTIVE This study aims to investigate the influence factors of treatment nonadherence and to determine whether this smartphone-based app can improve the compliance rate with MDTs. METHODS Patients who had received a diagnosis of invasive breast cancer and had undergone MDT between March 2013 and May 2019 were included. Patients were classified into 3 groups: Pre-App cohort (November 2017, before the launch of the app); App nonused, cohort (after November 2017 but not using the app); and App used cohort (after November 2017 and using the app). Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the factors related to MDT adherence. Compliance with specific adjuvant treatments, including chemotherapy, radiotherapy, endocrine therapy, and targeted therapy, was also evaluated. RESULTS A total of 4475 patients were included, with Pre-App, App nonused, and App used cohorts comprising 2966 (66.28%), 861 (19.24%), and 648 (14.48%) patients, respectively. Overall, 15.53% (695/4475) patients did not receive MDT recommendations; the noncompliance rate ranged from 27.4% (75/273) in 2013 to 8.8% (44/500) in 2019. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that app use was independently associated with adherence to adjuvant treatment. Compared with the patients in the Pre-App cohort, patients in the App used cohort were less likely to deviate from MDT recommendations (odds ratio [OR] 0.61, 95% CI 0.43-0.87; <i>P</i>=.007); no significant difference was found in the App nonused cohort (<i>P</i>=.77). Moreover, app use decreased the noncompliance rate for adjuvant chemotherapy (OR 0.41, 95% CI 0.27-0.65; <i>P</i><.001) and radiotherapy (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.25-0.96; <i>P</i>=.04), but not for anti-HER2 therapy (<i>P</i>=.76) or endocrine therapy (<i>P</i>=.39). CONCLUSIONS This smartphone-based app can increase MDT adherence in patients undergoing adjuvant therapy; this was more obvious for adjuvant chemotherapy and radiotherapy.


2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marianne Ewertz ◽  
Maj-Britt Jensen ◽  
Katrín Á. Gunnarsdóttir ◽  
Inger Højris ◽  
Erik H. Jakobsen ◽  
...  

Purpose This study was performed to characterize the impact of obesity on the risk of breast cancer recurrence and death as a result of breast cancer or other causes in relation to adjuvant treatment. Patients and Methods Information on body mass index (BMI) at diagnosis was available for 18,967 (35%) of 53,816 women treated for early-stage breast cancer in Denmark between 1977 and 2006 with complete follow-up for first events (locoregional recurrences and distant metastases) up to 10 years and for death up to 30 years. Information was available on prognostic factors and adjuvant treatment for all patients. Univariate analyses were used to compare the associations of known prognostic factors and risks of recurrence or death according to BMI categories. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the influence of BMI after adjusting for other factors. Results Patients with a BMI of 30 kg/m2 or more were older and had more advanced disease at diagnosis compared with patients with a BMI below 25 kg/m2 (P < .001). When data were adjusted for disease characteristics, the risk of developing distant metastases after 10 years was significantly increased by 46%, and the risk of dying as a result of breast cancer after 30 years was significantly increased by 38% for patients with a BMI of 30 kg/m2 or more. BMI had no influence on the risk of locoregional recurrences. Both chemotherapy and endocrine therapy seemed to be less effective after 10 or more years for patients with BMIs greater than 30 kg/m2. Conclusion Obesity is an independent prognostic factor for developing distant metastases and for death as a result of breast cancer; the effects of adjuvant therapy seem to be lost more rapidly in patients with breast cancer and obesity.


2015 ◽  
Vol 33 (36) ◽  
pp. 4259-4267 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew J. Epstein ◽  
Yu-Ning Wong ◽  
Nandita Mitra ◽  
Anil Vachani ◽  
Sakhena Hin ◽  
...  

Purpose We assessed the associations between the 21-gene recurrence score assay (RS) receipt, subsequent chemotherapy use, and medical expenditures among patients with early-stage breast cancer. Patients and Methods Data from the Pennsylvania Cancer Registry were used to assemble a retrospective cohort of women with early-stage breast cancer from 2007 to 2010 who underwent initial surgical treatment. These data were merged with administrative claims from the 12-month periods before and after diagnosis to identify comorbidities, treatments, and expenditures (n = 7,287). Propensity score–weighted regression models were estimated to identify the effects of RS receipt on chemotherapy use and medical spending in the year after diagnosis. Results The associations between RS receipt and outcomes varied markedly by patient age. RS use was associated with lower chemotherapy use among women younger than 55 (19.2% lower; 95% CI, 10.6 to 27.9). RS use was associated with higher chemotherapy use among women 75 to 84 years old (5.7% higher; 95% CI, 0.4 to 11.0). RS receipt was associated with lower adjusted 1-year medical spending among women younger than 55 ($15,333 lower; 95% CI, $2,841 to $27,824) and with higher spending among women who were 75 to 84 years old ($3,489 higher; 95% CI, $857 to $6,122). Conclusion RS receipt was associated with reduced use of adjuvant chemotherapy and lower health care spending among women with breast cancer who were younger than 55. Conversely, among women 75 and older, RS testing was associated with a modest increase in chemotherapy use and slightly higher spending. From a population perspective, the impact of RS testing on breast cancer treatment and health care costs is much greater in younger women.


2017 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 90 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.J. Bastedo ◽  
M.K. Krzyzanowska ◽  
R. Moineddin ◽  
L. Yun ◽  
K.A. Enright ◽  
...  

Background We used administrative health data to explore the impact of primary care physician (pcp) visits on acute-care service utilization by women receiving adjuvant chemotherapy for early-stage breast cancer (ebc).Methods Our population-based retrospective cohort study examined pcp visits and acute-care use [defined as an emergency room (er) visit or hospitalization] by women diagnosed with ebc between 2007 and 2009 and treated with adjuvant chemotherapy. Multivariate regression analysis was used to identify the effect of pcp visits on the likelihood of experiencing an acute-care visit.Results Patients receiving chemotherapy visited a pcp significantly more frequently than they had before their diagnosis [relative risk (rr): 1.48; 95% confidence interval (ci): 1.44 to 1.53; p < 0.001] and significantly more frequently than control subjects without cancer (rr: 1.51; 95% ci: 1.46 to 1.57; p < 0.001). More than one third of pcp visits by chemotherapy patients were related to breast cancer or chemotherapy-related side effects. In adjusted multivariate analyses, the likelihood of experiencing an er visit or hospitalization increased in the days immediately after a pcp visit (rr: 1.92; 95% ci: 1.76 to 2.10; p < 0.001).Conclusions During chemotherapy treatment, patients visited their pcp more frequently than control subjects did, and they visited for reasons related to their breast cancer or to chemotherapy-related side effects. Visits to a pcp by patients receiving chemotherapy were associated with an increased frequency of er visits or hospitalizations in the days immediately after the pcp visit. Those results suggest an opportunity to institute measures for early detection and intervention in chemotherapy side effects.


2006 ◽  
Vol 24 (18_suppl) ◽  
pp. 20012-20012 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Xenidis ◽  
D. Mavroudis ◽  
S. Apostolaki ◽  
M. Perraki ◽  
A. Stathopoulou ◽  
...  

20012 Background: To evaluate the effect of adjuvant treatment on the peripheral blood CK-19 mRNA circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in patients with early-stage breast cancer. Methods: CTCs were detected by real-time RT-PCR assay, in 119 patients with estrogen or/and progesterone receptors-positive tumors at the following time points: before the initiation and after the completion of adjuvant chemotherapy and every 3 or 6 months during the period of adjuvant tamoxifen administration. Results: Adjuvant chemotherapy failed to “eliminate” the CTCs in 17 (47%) out of 36 patients with detectable cells in pre-chemotherapy samples; in addition, adjuvant tamoxifen failed to “eliminate” the CTCs in 8 (36.4%) of 22 patients displaying detectable cells in post-chemotherapy samples. The incidence of clinical relapse was significantly (p = 0.017) higher for patients with post-chemotherapy detectable CTCs as well as for patients with persistently detectable CTCs throughout the follow-up period compared with those who did not (65.3% vs 7.3%, respectively; p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, post-chemotherapy detection of CTCs and their persistence throughout the follow-up period were significantly associated (p = 0.001 and 0.003, respectively) with early relapse. Conclusions: The detection of CK-19 mRNA+ CTCs after adjuvant chemotherapy and during tamoxifen administration is an independent prognostic factor associated with unfavorable outcome. No significant financial relationships to disclose.


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