Hyperglycemia induced by systemic therapy in patients with breast cancer — a retrospective single-center analysis

Introduction. Glucose metabolism disorders are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer (BC), which is the most common cancer in women. The association between metabolic disorders and BC is well established. However, data regarding the impact of chemotherapy (CTH) used in the systemic treatment of BC on hyperglycemia and DM are scarce. Material and methods. The study included 205 adult women (average age: 56; range: 28–81 years) with histologically confirmed primary BC treated with chemotherapy between 2011–2016. The patients were divided into groups depending on CTH based on taxoids (T) (n = 111; 54.2%) or non-taxoids (nT) (n = 94; 45.8%). All patients' fasting blood glucose levels were assessed before, during, and ending CTH, and menopausal status were analyzed. The statistical analysis was carried out with STATISTICA 10.0 software. Results. The abnormal glucose level before CTH occurred in 104 patients (50.7%), and 17 (8.3%) were previously diagnosed with DM. There were no statistically significant differences before CTH between T and nT groups (p = 0.776; median: 100 mg/dL). Within the T group during CTH, a statistically significant increase in glucose level was observed (p < 0.0001; median: 124 mg/dL). There was a statistically significant difference in fasting blood glucose before CTH and during CTH among postmenopausal women (p = 0.015 T, p = 0.041 nT). Conclusions. Systemic treatment of BC may induce glucose metabolism disorders. The group of postmenopausal patients treated with taxoids seems to be at an increased risk of hyperglycemia during CTH. Therefore, special diabetological care during CTH and follow-up should be recommended in this group of BC patients.