Meta-analysis of the effects of epoetin alfa treatment on quality of life in anaemic cancer patients

Treatment with epoetin alfa has repeatedly been shown to improve the quality of life (QoL) of cancer patients with anaemia. We used meta-analytical techniques to synthesise data from all available (published and unpublished) studies of epoetin alfa in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy that used validated OoL instruments. Results from 23 studies were synthesised. These employed the CLAS, FACT, SF-36 and ECOG (WHO) QoL scales. The metaanalysis indicated that treatment with epoetin alfa was associated with a clear and statistically significant improvement in QoL as measured by all subscales of CLAS, all subscales of FACT, and 5 subscales of SF-36. In contrast, control groups experienced no significant change, or, in some cases, a deterioration in QoL. Improvement was related to treatment duration. The generic ECOG (WHO) performance scale indicated that, even though epoetin alfa treatment is associated with clear benefits in terms of OoL, this population of patients receiving chemotherapy for cancer experience a gradual decrease in functional status over time.