Hematotoxic adverse drug reactions associated with vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors and cytotoxic drugs in the treatment of glioblastoma: a systematic review

Several studies have shown that the use of inhibitors of vascular endothelial growth factor (Vascular Endothelial Gowth Factor, VEGF) in the treatment of glioblastoma results in a significant increase in the rate of progression-free survival. However, administration of anti-VEGF agents is associated with the development of a wide range of adverse drug reactions (ADR), among which, hematotoxic ADR is the most common. The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic review based on the results of randomized controlled clinical studies on the type and frequency of hematotoxic ADRs associated with anti-VEGF and chemotherapeutic agents in the treatment of glioblastoma. Material and Methods. Pubmed, EMBASE, Cohrane Library and eLibrary databases were used to identify reports from randomized controlled clinical studies on the safety of anti-VEGF drugs as the main/auxiliary treatment for patients with glioblastoma, and published from January 2008 to August 2019. The main criteria for inclusion of studies in the systematic review were determined. Results. The combined data analysis included 13 randomized controlled clinical trials. The average incidence of hematotoxic ADRs associated with anti-VEGF agents in monotherapy for glioblastoma was 27.7 %. Neutropenia and thrombocytopenia were the most common types of ADR. The average incidence of hematotoxic ADRs associated with cytotoxic drugs in monotherapy for glioblastoma was 48.1 %, and lymphopenia and thrombocytopenia were the main types of hematotoxic ADRs. The average incidence of hematotoxic ADRs associated with the combined use of anti-VEGF and chemotherapeutic drugs was 46.2 %. in this case, the most common ADRs were thrombocytopenia, neutropenia, and anemia. The use of a combination of anti-VEGF, chemotherapeutic drugs and radiation therapy was associated with the development of hematotoxic ADRs with an average incidence of 12.3 %. The most common ADR was severe thrombocytopenia. Conclusion. The use of anti-VEGF drugs as monotherapy for glioblastoma was associated with a lower incidence of hematotoxic ADRs. in this case, bevacizumab was the safest anti-VEGF agent in relation to hematotoxicity. The highest incidence of hematotoxic ADRs is observed for a combination of anti-VEGF and cytotoxic drugs, such as cediranib with lomustine and bevacizumab with carboplatin.