Early Intervention with Epoetin Alfa During Platinum-Based Chemotherapy: An Analysis of Quality-of-Life Results of a Multicenter, Randomized, Controlled Trial Compared with Population Normative Data

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of epoetin alfa on quality of life (QOL) in patients with solid tumors and mild-to-moderate anemia receiving platinum-based chemotherapy relative to population norms. METHODS In the original study, patients (n = 316) with hemoglobin (Hb) levels 10.5 g/dl. CONCLUSION Patients in this study had impaired QOL compared with population norms. Early treatment with epoetin alfa to correct anemia improved QOL in a statistically significant and clinically meaningful way, and improvements were greater in patients with baseline Hb levels >10.5 g/dl.