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CC BY 4.0 · Brazilian Journal of Oncology 2025; 21: s00451811732
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1811732
Original Article
Clinical Oncology

Prevalence and Management of Immediate Adverse Reactions to Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients: A Retrospective Study

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Funding The authors declare that they did not receive funding from agencies in the public, private, or non-profit sectors to conduct the present study.
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Abstract

Objective

To analyze the prevalence, characteristics, and management of immediate adverse reactions (ARs) to chemotherapeutic agents in breast cancer patients treated at the National Cancer Institute (Instituto Nacional del Cáncer, INCAN, in Spanish) in Paraguay.

Materials and Methods

A retrospective, observational, and cross-sectional study was conducted using clinical records of 200 breast cancer patients aged between 25 and 75 years submitted to outpatient chemotherapy at the INCAN between August 2022 and August 2023. The data collected included patient demographics, breast cancer subtype, chemotherapeutic agents used, and reported ARs.

Statistical Analysis

Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the data. Chi-square tests were performed to evaluate the associations between ARs and specific chemotherapy agents, with statistical significance set at p < 0.05.

Results

Among the 200 patients included, 61% (122/200) experienced ARs. The most common reactions were skin rash (17.1%), nausea (16.1%), and flushing (9.5%). Luminal A was the most prevalent breast cancer subtype (32.5%). Paclitaxel and docetaxel were the most frequently associated agents (29% each), but no statistically significant association was found involving specific drugs and ARs. The medications most commonly used in the management of ARs included chlorpheniramine (32%), dexamethasone (24%), and ondansetron (14%).

Conclusions

Immediate ARs to chemotherapy are common among breast cancer patients, and they require effective monitoring and management protocols. These findings highlight the need for tailored strategies to mitigate ARs and improve treatment outcomes, particularly in resource-constrained settings.

Keywords

antineoplastic agents - drug-related side effects and adverse reactions - breast neoplasms - taxanes - hypersensitivity

Authors' Contributions

SB, SO, MP: conceptualization, data curation, investigation, methodology, resources, writing – original draft, writing – review & editing; GI: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, methodology, project administration, software, supervision, validation, visualization, writing – original draft, writing – review & editing.


Ethical Approval Statement

The present study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki, and it was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of Universidad del Pacífico. Patient data were obtained from clinical files, and all identifying information was kept confidential. Names and other personal identifiers were not included in the main database to ensure privacy and confidentiality.




Publication History

Received: 19 February 2025

Accepted: 11 July 2025

Article published online:
09 October 2025

© 2025. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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Bibliographical Record
Guillermo Insfran, Sandra Bernal, Skarlette Ovelar, Marian Pérez. Prevalence and Management of Immediate Adverse Reactions to Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients: A Retrospective Study. Brazilian Journal of Oncology 2025; 21: s00451811732.
DOI: 10.1055/s-0045-1811732
 

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