Neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with vulvar carcinoma: a systematic review

Neoadjuvant chemotherapy is one of the options of treating patients with vulvar carcinoma. In this systematic review we searched three databases (Medline, EMBASE, Cochrane Library) for literature regarding this method of therapy. Additional sources were also searched. We included primary studies of any design with no language or date restrictions. Fourteen full-text studies were found; due to heterogeneity of data no quantitative synthesis was performed. Quality of evidence was very low, mainly due to population sizes and no available comparative data with other types of treatment. The results were mixed, however some of the studies reported promising results regarding survival and possibility of more conservative surgery. In general chemotherapy was well-tolerated, but in some studies regimens containing bleomycin and methotrexate presented particularly severe toxicity.