A final analysis from the CHOICE study examining darbepoetin alfa use for chemotherapy-induced anaemia in current European clinical practice

AbstractObjectives:The CHOICE study was a prospective, multicentre, observational study designed to assess the level of adherence in current clinical practice to the European product label and the EORTC guidelines for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced anaemia with darbepoetin alfa (DA).Methods:Hb levels and red blood cell (RBC) transfusion requirements were evaluated among 1900 patients with solid tumours in 11 European countries. The primary outcome measure was the proportion of patients with a target Hb level of ≥10–≤12 g/dL after 9 weeks’ DA treatment.Results:The full analysis set (FAS) comprised 1887 patients (mean ± SD age 62.4 ± 11.4 years) divided into categories by baseline Hb < 9 g/dL (n = 281); 9–<10 g/dL (n = 770); 10–<11 g/dL (n = 695); ≥11 g/dL (n = 114). The proportion of patients who remained on the study at week 9 achieving the target Hb level was 37% (n = 60), 48% (n = 217), 54% (n = 210) and 38% (n = 23) in the subgroups with a baseline Hb level of <9 g/dL, 9–<10 g/dL, 10–<11 g/dL an...