Abstract
Neutropenia and febrile neutropenia (FN) are among the most common side effects/complications of chemotherapy. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the practice of the use of biosimilar filgrastim in the primary and secondary prevention of FN, and assess its efficacy and safety. A multi-center, non-interventional epidemiological study of 170 cancer patients aged 23-82 years was conducted. Data were collected via a questionnaire completed based on medical documentation and patient examination over five chemotherapy visits. The risk of FN related to the chemotherapy protocol used was in the range of 10-20% in >50% of the patients (53.5%) and a majority (74.7%) had additional FN risk factors. 60% of the patients received filgrastim as primary prevention of FN, and 40% received it as secondary prevention. In 40.6% of cases, six cycles of chemotherapy were used. More than 90% of patients continued chemotherapy according to the initial recommended dose. In majority of patients, no FN was observed following the final cycle of chemotherapy. Median neutrophil count at visit 1 was 2.2×103/µl and did not fall below that level. Majority of patients (>70%) performed self-injections of filgrastim, and 86.3% of patients were continuing therapy with this drug at the last visit. No treatment-related side effects were recorded. The use of biosimilar filgrastim in the primary and secondary prevention of FN allows to maintain initial chemotherapy dosage. Furthermore, the use of biosimilar filgrastim is safe and tolerable, and has a high acceptance by patients.