Background: Among other actions, chemotherapy may induce an activation of systemic inflammatory and immune response.
Patients and methods: Urinary neopterin was evaluated, using high-performance liquid chromatography, before and during dose-dense combination chemotherapy with doxorubicin, cyclophosphamide and sequential paclitaxel (neoadjuvant or adjuvant) in 194 patients with breast carcinoma. Hemoglobin, peripheral blood cell count and, in a subgroup of patients, iron metabolism were also evaluated.
Results: Urinary neopterin increased significantly during the chemotherapy. The increase in urinary neopterin was accompanied by a gradual decrease of hemoglobin. A marked increase in serum ferritin concentration was observed during the chemotherapy, along with fluctuations of iron concentrations. Among 161 patients treated with primary chemotherapy, the pathological response was evaluable in 150. Pathological complete response was observed in 37 cases (25%). In patients with pathological complete response, significantly lower serum ferritin concentrations were observed.
Conclusion: Present data demonstrate the presence of systemic immune activation, reflected in increased urinary neopterin concentrations, in breast carcinoma patients treated with dose-dense chemotherapy. Lower ferritin concentrations were predictive of pathological complete response.