Ferric carboxymaltose reduces transfusions and hospital stay in patients with colon cancer and anemia.

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of preoperative intravenous (IV) ferric carboxymaltose (FCM) administration vs. no-IV iron in colon cancer (CC) anemic patients undergoing elective surgery with curative intention. This was a multicenter, observational study including two cohorts of consecutive CC anemic patients: the no-IV iron treatment group was obtained retrospectively while FCM-treated patients were recorded prospectively. A total of 266 patients were included: 111 received FCM (median dose 1000 mg) and 155 were no-IV iron subjects. Both groups were similar in terms of demographic characteristics, tumor location, surgical approach, and intra-operative bleeding severity. The FCM group showed a significant lower need for red blood cell (RBC) transfusion during the study (9.9 vs. 38.7%; OR: 5.9, p Preoperative ferric carboxymaltose treatment in patients with CC and iron deficiency anemia significantly reduced RBC transfusion requirements and hospital length of stay, reaching higher response rates and percentages of normalized hemoglobin levels both at hospital admission and 30 days post-surgery.