The effects of epoetin alfa on transfusion requirements in head and neck cancer patients: a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of perioperative recombinant human erythropoietin (r-HuEPO, epoetin alfa) in stimulating hematopoiesis and reducing allogeneic blood transfusion requirements in major head and neck cancer surgery. STUDY DESIGN: Double-blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized, prospective clinical trial. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients undergoing surgical resection of head and neck tumors at the University of Iowa hospitals completed this study. Patients were required to have a pre-study hemoglobin >/=10.0 g/dL and