First-line Gemcitabine Versus Treatment of Physician's Choice for Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Prospective Cohort Study

Anticancer Res. 2021 Mar;41(3):1671-1676. doi: 10.21873/anticanres.14930.

Abstract

Background/aim: This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of first-line gemcitabine monotherapy for metastatic breast cancer (MBC) and its effect on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) compared with treatment of physician's choice (TPC).

Patients and methods: We enrolled 96 patients into the first-line gemcitabine group (n=47) or other treatment of physician's choice (TPC) group (n=49) from May 2010 to April 2013. HRQoL was evaluated every 4 weeks.

Results: There was no significant difference in the median time to treatment failure (5.3 vs. 4.6 months, hazard ratio=0.87, p=0.546) and the incidence rates of grade 3/4 haematological toxicity (10.6% vs. 8.1%, p=0.677) and grade 3/4 non-haematological toxicity (4.2% vs. 8.1%, p=0.429) between the gemcitabine and TPC groups. Changes in HRQoL from baseline to 12 weeks were not significantly different.

Conclusion: Gemcitabine achieves similar efficacy and HRQoL benefit to other chemotherapy and can be used as first-line treatment for MBC.

Keywords: Metastatic breast cancer; gemcitabine; treatment of physician’s choice.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Multicenter Study

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Breast Neoplasms / drug therapy*
  • Breast Neoplasms / pathology
  • Breast Neoplasms / psychology
  • Deoxycytidine / adverse effects
  • Deoxycytidine / analogs & derivatives*
  • Deoxycytidine / therapeutic use
  • Female
  • Gemcitabine
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Neoplasm Metastasis
  • Physicians
  • Prospective Studies
  • Quality of Life
  • Treatment Failure

Substances

  • Deoxycytidine
  • Gemcitabine