The Effect of Chemotherapy on Anemia Parameters in Breast Cancer Patients
Masita Wulandari S, Nialiana Endah E, Dewi latifatul Ilma, Rani Laelani

Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jenderal Soedirman University

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer is a global health problem. Breast cancer is the highest type of cancer in Indonesia, around 16.6% of 396,914 cases. Breast cancer treatment can be done with chemotherapy. However, chemotherapy can cause side effects, one of which is anemia. These side effects can hinder therapy and even cause death, so it is necessary to monitor the side effects of anemia based on the parameters of hemoglobin (Hb), corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) in breast cancer patients.
Objective: determine the effect of chemotherapy drugs on anemia parameters seen from the Hb, MCV, MCHC, and MCH values.
Methods: This observational descriptive-analytic study used medical records and interviews conducted over a 2-month period. Purposive sampling was used to select 97 respondents who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Anemia parameters (Hb, MCV, MCH, and MCHC) before and after chemotherapy were analyzed using the Wilcoxon and t-tests.
Results: The results showed that most patients diagnosed with breast cancer were aged 45-55 years. On average, most patients are undergoing the second cycle of chemotherapy. The most widely used drug is the doxorubicin-cyclophosphamide combination regimen. Based on the results of the analysis using the T test, it was found that chemotherapy drugs had an effect on Hb values (p < 0.05), and the results of the Wilcoxon test analysis found that chemotherapy drugs had an effect on MCHC values (p < 0.05) and MCH (p < 0.05), while the Wilcoxon test results showed that chemotherapy drugs had no effect on the MCV value (p > 0.05).
Conclusion: Chemotherapy can significantly affect anemia parameters such as Hb, MCH, and MCHC values.

Keywords: anemia, breast cancer, chemotherapy

Topic: Clinical pharmacy