Anaemia in Patients with Malignant Neoplasms

Objective To evaluate anaemia in Egyptian patients with malignant neoplasms. Methods This is a prospective study, involved 60 malignant neoplasms patients (30 males and 30 females) referred from Alexandria University Hospital and the Medical Research Institute in Alexandria for six months (from Jun.1st to Dec.30th, 2017). Results Anaemia among solid tumors was higher than in hematological malignancies. Males showed higher anaemia with hematological malignancies while females showed higher anaemia with solid tumors. Common cancers with anaemia were GIT cancers, breast and leukemias. In males, common cancers with anaemia were GIT cancers, leukemias and lymphomas, while in females, breast cancers, GIT cancers and gynecological cancers. The common morphology of anaemia was normocytic normochromic followed by microcytic hypochromic pictures. The common grades of anaemia were grade 1 and 2, severe degree anaemia was in 21.7 %. Anaemic patients with cancers showed significantly lower mean Hb, RBC count, Htc and MCHC, and significantly higher mean serum ferritin and B12 concentrations. Conclusion This study concluded that anaemia is a common finding in cancer patients and attributed to increased RBCs destruction and cytokins mediated decreased production and recommended further studies.