Intravenous ATP infusions can be safely administered in the home setting: a study in pre-terminal cancer patients.
The aim of the study was to investigate the safety of adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) administration at home in pre-terminal cancer patients. Included were patients with cancer for whom medical treatment options were restricted to supportive care, who had a life expectancy of less than 6 months, a World Health Organization performance status 1 or 2, and suffered from at least one of the following complaints: fatigue, anorexia or weight loss >5% over the previous 6 months. Side effects were registered systematically on a standard form according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Common Toxicity Criteria. Fifty-one patients received a total of 266 intravenous ATP infusions. Of these, 11 infusions (4%) were given at the lowest dose of 20 microg kg(-1) min(-1), 85 infusions (32%) at 25-40 microg kg(-1) min(-1), and 170 (64%) at the highest dose of 45-50 microg kg(-1) min(-1) ATP. The majority of ATP infusions (63%) were without side effects. Dyspnea was the most common side effect (14% of infusions), followed by chest discomfort (12%) and the urge to take a deep breath (11%). No symptoms of cardiac ischemia occurred in any of the infusions. All side effects were transient and resolved within minutes after lowering the ATP infusion rate. Side effects were most frequent in the presence of cardiac disorders. We conclude that ATP at a maximum dose of 50 microg kg(-1) min(-1) can be safely administered in the home setting in patients with pre-terminal cancer.
Beijer
Sandra
S
Department of Epidemiology, NUTRIM, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD, Maastricht, The Netherlands. sandra.beijer@epid.unimaas.nl
Gielisse
Eric A R
EA
Hupperets
Pierre S
PS
van den Borne
Ben E E M
BE
van den Beuken-van Everdingen
Marieke
M
Nijziel
Marten R
MR
van Henten
Arjen M J
AM
Dagnelie
Pieter C
PC
D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004417:Dyspnea / Q000139:chemically induced; D005221:Fatigue / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D005260:Female; D018718:Home Infusion Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D008297:Male; D020714:Maximum Tolerated Dose; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000379:methods*; D013727:Terminal Care / Q000379:methods*; D015431:Weight Loss / Q000187:drug effects