Incidence of febrile neutropenia in lymphoma patients receiving CHOP with Day 1 or 2 pegfilgrastim.

e18562 Background: Febrile neutropenia is a rare, but serious consequence of chemotherapy that can be fatal. The current guidelines set forth by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) recommend prophylactic use of granulocyte colony stimulating factors in patients being treated with chemotherapy regimens associated with a greater than 20% risk of developing febrile neutropenia. Pegfilgrastim is indicated to decrease the incidence of infection as manifested by febrile neutropenia. Some oncologists have employed the practice of administering pegfilgratim on the same day as chemotherapy in order to help patients avoid returning for a single treatment on a day when patients may be experiencing some of the most unpleasant adverse effects of chemotherapy. This project was undertaken in an attempt to determine whether same day pegfilgrastim does or does not lead to an increase in febrile neutropenia. Methods: A retrospective data review of patients receiving chemotherapy consisting of CHOP with Day 1 and Day 2 pegfilgrastim administration for lymphoma malignancy was collected. Data was collected from the Illinois CancerCare electronic database in Peoria, Illinois. Illinois CancerCare is a large community-based medical oncology practice. Data was collected for patients between January 2004 and January 31, 2009. All eligible patients had received a single dose of pegfilgrastim, 6 mg subcutaneously, on either Day 1 or Day 2 of chemotherapy administration. A statistical analysis was performed using a chi-square test, Fisher's Exact test, and a student's T-test. A p value of 0.01 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 13 episodes of febrile neutropenia were reported. 6% (10) of the Day 1 cohort (N=162), and 10% (3) of the Day 2 cohort (N=31) developed febrile neutropenia (p=0.4). There were 52 (8.1%) episodes of grade 4 neutropenia with D1 administration compared to 14 (11%) with D2 (p=0.4). Conclusions: In this setting there was no difference in incidence of febrile neutropenia between Day 1 and Day 2 pegfilgrastim administration. Author Disclosure Employment or Leadership Position Consultant or Advisory Role Stock Ownership Honoraria Research Funding Expert Testimony Other Remuneration Amgen