Thromboembolic Events Among Cancer Patients Treated with Chemotherapy at Adult Oncology Unit of Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital: A Retrospective Study
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Date
2020-03
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Addis Abeba University
Abstract
Venous thromboembolism is a common problem in patients treated for cancer, although the
reported incidence varies widely between studies. Unlike other countries, in Ethiopia to our
knowledge no such studies had been done yet and the findings of this study will assist treatment
decisions in adult patients treated at the oncology unit of Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital.
Hence, this study was aimed to assess the incidence of thromboembolic events events among
cancer patients treated with chemotherapy and their characteristics. An institution-based
retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted from 1
st
March, 2019 to 1
st
June, 2019. Data
were collected retrospectively from a total of 423 patient medical records. Patients who have
received at least a single cycle of any chemotherapy regimen was included in the study.
Systematic random sampling technique was employed to recruit the study participants. The data
were entered into Epi-info version 7 and then exported to and analyzed using Statistical Package
for Social Sciences, version 25. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data while
binary logistic regression analysis was used to determine factors associated with the risk of
thromboembolic events among cancer patients treated by chemotherapy. P-value <0.05 was
considered as statistically significant. The median age of study participants was 43 years, which
ranged from 14 to 83 years. Majority of the study participants were treated for breast cancer.
Thromboembolic events encountered in 43 (10.2 %) of patients, from which the commonest one
being deep venous thrombosis 36 (85.7 %), followed by myocardial infarction 5 (11.9 %), and
pulmonary embolism 1 (2.4 %). In multivariable logistic regression, blood transfusion, a primary
site of cancer with gastrointestinal malignancy and performance status showed statically
significant association. The incidence of thromboembolic events among cancer patients who had
been treated by chemotherapy was high compared to other studies. Hence, other prospective
randomized trials are needed to see the importance of thrombo-prophylaxis in such high-risk
patients.
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Keywords
Cancer, Thromboembolic events, Venous Thromboembolism, Chemotherapy.