Prevalence of Iron Deficiency Anemia in Gynecological Cancer Patients Undergoing Treatment: A Two-Institution Retrospective Study

Background: Anemia in patients with cancer negatively affects their quality of life and cancer outcomes. However, most patients with chemotherapy-induced anemia (CIA) are not appropriately evaluated or treated, and the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia (IDA) in CIA remains unclear.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the electronic records of patients with gynecological cancer in two tertiary hospitals, between March 2023 and July 2023, and evaluated their anemia status.

Results: We identified 54 patients with CIA, and IDA was found in 74% (40/54) of patients with CIA, including 4% (2/54) with absolute iron deficiency (transferrin saturation (TSAT) < 20% and ferritin < 30 ng/mL), 63% (34/54) with functional iron deficiency (TSAT < 50% and 30 ng/mL < ferritin < 500 ng/mL), and 7% (4/54) with possible functional iron deficiency (TSAT < 50% and 500 ng/mL < ferritin < 800 ng/mL).

Conclusions: We found that 74% of patients with CIA under gynecologic cancer treatments were IDA in this study.