The clinical value of erythropoietin in patients with cancer.

This is a good review of cancer- and chemotherapy-related anemia and its treatment with epoetin alfa. However, the review seems a bit negative regarding epoetin relative to blood transfusion when treating anemia. Initial responses can occur in two weeks, not two months. It is true that response prediction has been difficult, but 2/3 of patients do respond. Finally, when all costs have been included, blood transfusion and erythropoietin treatment expense to treat anemia are fairly similar, and not so different.

– D. H. Henry