Fatigue, Alopecia, and Stomatitis Among Patients With Breast Cancer Receiving Cyclin-Dependent Kinase 4 and 6 Inhibitors: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
July 2017
in “
Expert Review of Anticancer Therapy
”
TLDR Breast cancer patients taking CDK4/6 inhibitors are more likely to experience fatigue, hair loss, and mouth sores.
In a systematic review and meta-analysis of 2,249 patients across four studies, it was found that patients with breast cancer receiving cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 (CDK4/6) inhibitors had an increased risk of experiencing fatigue, alopecia, and stomatitis. The relative risk for all-grade fatigue was 1.34, for all-grade alopecia was 2.14, and for all-grade stomatitis was 4.87, with high-grade fatigue also showing an increased risk with a relative risk of 2.40. The review called for further research to assess the impact of these side effects on patients' quality of life and to better understand the specific nature of hair loss and stomatitis associated with these drugs. The MONARCH 2 phase III study supported these findings, indicating a significant risk increase for fatigue and alopecia with the use of abemaciclib. The review emphasized the importance of considering alopecia as a potential adverse event when counseling patients. The analysis was based on study-level data without individual patient data, and one author disclosed a research grant from Novartis Oncology.
