Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity: single-centre prospective study

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) ranges from simple paresthesia to paralysis, which may be transient or irreversible. The aim of our study was to detect CINP in our patients undergoing chemotherapy and to study the cumulative neurotoxic doses for the different drugs.

This is a cross-sectional prospective study carried out in the medical oncology department of the Habib Bourguiba University Hospital in Sfax. A survey was conducted to detect and explore possible chemo-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients undergoing known potentially neurotoxic anti-cancer treatments.

Seventy-three patients were included in the study. The average age was 51.8 years (13-80 years). The prevalence of CIPN was 52.1%. CIPN was classified as grade I in 24 (63.2%) cases and grade II in 14 (36.8%) cases. No grade III or IV peripheral neuropathy was detected in our patients. Paclitaxel was the drug with the highest incidence of CIPN (76.9%). The chemotherapy (CT) protocols most prone to chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) were based on taxanes (47.3%) and oxaliplatin (59%). Paclitaxel was the drug most likely to cause CIPN (76.9%) (p=0.031). Paclitaxel single dose per cycle of 175 mg/m² (66.67%) was more associated with the occurrence of CIPN than 80 mg/m² (40%), but without significant difference (p=0.437). The average cumulative dose was estimated at 315 mg/m² for docetaxel, 474 mg/m² for oxaliplatin and 579 mg/m² for paclitaxel (p=0.16).

The prevalence of NPCI was 51.1% in our series. Oxaliplatin and taxanes were the main contributors to this complication with cumulative dose over than 300 mg/m².