MTX toxicity by organ system | Number of events(n = 362) | Total events(%) |
---|---|---|
MTX, methotrexate. | ||
Toxicities were categorised according to the common toxicity criteria of the National Cancer Institute. Each toxicity was counted only once for each subject. General: fatigue/malaise, fever (>37.7°C), headache, rigours or chills, sweating, weight gain and weight loss. Gastrointestinal: anorexia, diarrhoea, dyspepsia, gastrointestinal bleed, hepatitis, nausea or vomiting, pancreatitis. Ear, nose, throat: stomatitis, tinnitus, xerostomia. Skin: alopecia, bullous eruption, petechiae, pruritis, rash. Pulmonary: cough, dyspnoea, pleurisy, pneumonitis, decreased pulmonary function (<90% diffusing capacity of the lung for carbon monoxide or forced vital capacity of pretreatment value). Neuropsychiatric: anxiety or depression, somnolence, inability to concentrate, insomnia, decreased libido, peripheral neuropathy, vertigo. Blood chemistry: serum creatinine>1.3×upper limit of normal (ULN); serum aspartate transaminase>1.5×ULN; serum alanine transaminase>1.5×ULN; serum alkaline phosphatase>2.0×ULN. Haematological: anaemia (haemoglobin decrease>1.4 g/dl from baseline); leucopenia (total white cell count<3900/mm3); thrombocytopenia (platelet count<75 000/mm3). | ||
General | 69 | 19.1 |
Gastrointestinal | 127 | 35.1 |
Ear, nose, throat | 52 | 14.3 |
Skin | 77 | 21.2 |
Pulmonary | 23 | 6.4 |
Neuropsychiatric | 2 | 0.6 |
Blood chemistry | 8 | 2.2 |
Haematological | 4 | 1.1 |
No of subjects with any toxicity | 196 | 87.9 |