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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Indian J Med Paediatr Oncol 2017; 38(01): 18-21
DOI: 10.4103/0971-5851.203498
Original Article

Taxane Combination Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer: Experience from a Tertiary Cancer Centre in India

Jyoti Bajpai
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
,
Deepa Susan
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
,
Vijay Patil
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
,
Reena Nair
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Medical Center, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
,
Jaya Ghosh
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
,
R A Badwe
Department of Surgical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
,
Sudeep Gupta
Department of Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
› Author Affiliations Financial support and sponsorship Nil.
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Abstract

Aims:Docetaxel, Doxorubicin, Cyclophosphamide (TAC) is an intensive chemotherapy regimen; however, being highly myelosuppressive, its usage is limited in developing countries and hence merits exploration for feasibility and efficacy. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective audit of medical records of breast cancer patients receiving TAC chemotherapy) from 2004 to 2008. Demographic details, toxicity, and outcome analysis were carried out. Results: A total of 133 patients (126 in [neo] adjuvant and 7 in metastatic setting) received TAC chemotherapy. The median age was 45 (21–67) years; 31% had coexisting diabetes and 12% hypertension. The delivered dose intensity was 94%. Discontinuation rate was 21/133 (15.8%) and the most common reason was hematological toxicity. There were 43 (32%) cases of febrile neutropenia and 2 (1.5%) Grade III thrombocytopenia with 3 (2%) toxic deaths. Grade III gastrointestinal toxicity (diarrhea) occurred in 35 (26%) and cardiac toxicity (congestive cardiac failure) in 2 (1.5%) patients. On univariate analysis, none of the variables (baseline serum albumin, hemoglobin, disease stage, or age) was found significant for chemotoxicity. At a median follow-up of 27 months (0.13–71.30 months), the estimated median disease-free survival (DFS) was 52 months in locally advanced group; however, the early breast cancer cohort has not reached to median DFS. Conclusions: TAC is an effective regimen but has significant toxicity despite the use of primary prophylactic Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating-Factor (G-GSF), including a small possibility of death. It can be considered “practically feasible” regimen in the adjuvant setting in carefully selected, fit patients.

Keywords

Breast cancer - developing countries - feasibility - TAC regimen


Publication History

Article published online:
06 July 2021

© 2017. Indian Society of Medical and Paediatric Oncology. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.)

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