Side effects of drugs in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy

Background: Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) therapy includes radiation, chemotherapy, or a combination of both. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of drug side effects in NPC patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study using secondary data in the form of medical records at Dr. Soetomo Hospital, Surabaya, from January 1 to December 31, 2018. Results: Comparison of the number of patients with the incidence of side effects of chemotherapy drugs was 1:3.8. Anemia was the most side effect of chemotherapy drugs with 85 cases (24.85%), followed by hypocalcemia with 78 cases (22.81%), and hyponatremia with 60 cases (17.54%). Leukopenia was the rarest type of side effect of chemotherapy drugs, with only one in 342 cases (0.29%). Based on the degree, it was found that the most side effects of chemotherapy drugs were first degree with 253 cases (73.98%), followed by second degree with 78 cases (22.81%), third degree with 9 cases (2.63%), and degree IV with 2 cases (0.58%). There were no side effects of grade V drugs in the samples. Conclusion: The incidence of side effects of neoadjuvant chemotherapy drugs was 77.24% with the most side effects of anemia.