OBJECTIVES: Physicians and patients considering chemotherapy treatment need to understand the risks and benefits of treatment in order to make an informed decision to undergo—or forgo—treatment. This study is aimed at elucidating the frequency of chemotherapy related side effects in early-stage breast cancer (EBC) patients by comparing results from the literature to the patient reported outcomes (PROs).

METHODS: A literature review has been performed on Chemotherapy (CT) related side effects in patients with EBC. Literature search was conducted based on the following criteria: EBC, reporting of prevalence. Findings are compared with PROs collected in the Netherlands (B-force, IKNL).

RESULTS: When comparing long-term side effects to the patient-reported outcomes, there are dissimilarities. Concordance is observed in myalgia, hormonal complains such as hot flashes, amenorrhea, symptoms of early menopause and night sweats (∆<10%). Moderate concordance is observed in heart complains, dyspareunia, weight gain, diarrhea, neuropathy, decline in cognitive functioning, and osteoporosis (∆=10-20%). Discordance is observed in arthralgia, alopecia, symptoms of failure ovaria, and fatigue (∆>20%). PROs reported higher incidences of heart problems, of pain (myalgia and arthralgia), amenorrhea, symptoms of early menopause, diarrhea, fatigue, neuropathy, decline in cognitive functioning. Literature reported higher incidences of alopecia, hot flashes, dyspareunia, weight gain, failure of ovaria, and night sweats.

CONCLUSIONS: This study has created insights on the frequency and prevalence of side effects. When comparing the results from the literature review to the PROs, most discordance is observed in the prevalence of failure of ovaries and alopecia (higher in literature), fatigue and arthralgia (higher in PROs). Differences in prevalence and discordance might be caused by the difference between clinically measurable- and subjective side effects. To improve the communication of the side effects to patients, a thorough analysis of the phenomena of shared decision making is needed.