Treatment of advanced ovarian cancer with carboplatin and paclitaxel in a patient undergoing hemodialysis: Case report and literature review

Abstract

A 69-year-old woman under maintenance hemodialysis was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer. We treated the patient with combination chemotherapy using paclitaxel and carboplatin. She experienced grade 4 thrombopenia on day 8 of the third course. The area under the concentration versus time curve (AUC) of platinum was 3.5 mg/mlÁmin. The interval between chemotherapy and hemodialysis was shortened starting with the fourth course. The AUC of platinum was then found to be 1.8 mg/mlÁmin. After seven courses of chemotherapy, the patient's CA 125 serum level dropped from 1317 to 42.6 U/ml. Nevertheless, the patient presented with long periods of severe myelosuppression. In patients on hemodialysis receiving such chemotherapy, the AUC of each cycle should be closely monitored and the dialysis schedule should be adjusted as need to reduce the risk of bone marrow suppression.