Combination of platinum-paclitaxel based chemotherapy after primary debulking surgery is the standard of care for ovarian cancer patients. Despite recent improvements of the advanced ovarian cancer treatment, around 70% of the these patients relapse within 18 months. Prognostic factors studied until now are still insufficient to predict the outcomes of these patients. For this reason, in recent years, several studies are trying to assess the role of biological markers as predictors of survival. Myelosuppression experienced during chemotherapy seems to be associated with improved clinical outcomes in several types of cancer.
The rationale of these results could be that hematological toxicity caused by chemotherapy is a mirror of sufficient dose of cytotoxic agents in the tumor.
The role of chemotherapy-induced neutropenia in advanced ovarian cancer has not been established yet. Moreover, according to some studies recently published, neutropenia is more common in BRCA mutation carriers.
The aim of our prospective study is to determine the relationship between neutropenia chemotherapy-related and survival in ovarian cancer patients. Besides, we want to determine the role of BRCA mutation in this context.
OC is considered a chronic disease. First line therapy in advanced stage is based on surgery plus chemotherapy; carboplatin plus paclitaxel is the standard regimen. There is a considerable inter-patient variation in drug exposure and we cannot identify patients who experience under-dosing as well as over-dosing of antiblastic drugs, during the treatment. The results of this study could add information about the prognosis of the patients, and consequently, could help the clinician in the modulation of the chemotherapy dose. Moreover, given that BRCA mutation has been related to more toxicity, we can provide information about the relationship of neutropenia, BRCA status, and survival.