Table 3.
Characteristics of unplanned presentations by treatment group
| Intervention N = 66/170 n (%) |
Control N = 78/176 n (%) |
|
|---|---|---|
| Days from start of chemotherapy cycle to unplanned presentation | ||
| 1−7 days | 29 (43.9) | 31 (39.7) |
| 8−14 days | 25 (37.9) | 26 (33.3) |
| 15−21 days | 9 (13.6) | 18 (23.1) |
| 22−28 days | 2 (3.0) | 1 (1.3) |
| 29−43 days | 1 (1.5) | 2 (2.6) |
| Presented during cycle | ||
| 1 | 36 (54.6) | 38 (48.7) |
| 2 | 17 (25.8) | 23 (29.5) |
| 3 | 13 (19.7) | 17 (21.8) |
| Reason for presentation | ||
| Chemotherapy side effects | 38 (57.6) | 43 (55.1) |
| Disease progression | 13 (19.7) | 16 (20.5) |
| Unrelated to chemotherapy or disease | 5 (7.6) | 6 (7.7) |
| Combination of reasons | 10 (15.2) | 13 (16.7) |
| Symptom at presentationa | ||
| Fever without febrile neutropenia | 14 (21.2) | 13 (16.7) |
| Febrile neutropenia | 11 (16.7) | 12 (15.4) |
| Nausea and vomiting | 11 (16.7) | 19 (24.4) |
| Abdominal pain | 10 (15.2) | 11 (14.1) |
| Diarrhoea | 5 (7.6) | 9 (11.5) |
| Constipation | 6 (9.1) | 5 (6.4) |
| Shortness of breath | 6 (9.1) | 7 (9.0) |
| Lethargy/Fatigue | 6 (9.1) | 6 (7.7) |
| Cough/sore throat | 5 (7.7) | 12 (15.6) |
| Confusion | 4 (6.1) | 2 (2.6) |
| Dehydration | 2 (3.0) | 5 (6.4) |
| Anxiety | 3 (4.5) | 4 (5.1) |
| Chest pain | 5 (7.6) | 4 (5.1) |
| Headache | 3 (4.5) | 4 (5.1) |
| Collapse | 4 (6.1) | 1 (1.3) |
| Number of symptoms (Mean, SD) | 2.2 (1.3) | 2.3 (1.42) |
| Range | 1–7 | 1–8 |
aNumbers add up to more than 66 and 78 and percentages add up to more than 100 as some patients presented with multiple symptoms