ABSTRACT
Parenteral nutrition (PN) exacerbates hyperglycemia, which is associated with increased morbidity and mortality in various cancer populations. By using a retrospective design, we examined incident hyperglycemia in PN and non-PN recipients and the associations with clinical events and 5-year survival in a cohort treated for myeloma with melphalan and auto-SCT (n=112). Clinical comparisons were made at admission, and 'before' and 'after' initiating PN to discern differences and temporality. Actual infusion times were used for PN patients; time frames based on mean PN infusion days were created for the non-PN recipients. Oral intake was lower 'before' in PN vs non-PN patients (P<0.001); however, no differences in mucositis, emesis, infections or transfusions were detected 'before.' Incident hyperglycemia (≥7.0 mmol/L) was significant 'after' PN initiation, and PN recipients experienced delays in WBC (P<0.05) and platelet engraftment (P=0.009), and required significantly greater RBC (P=0.0014) and platelet (P=0.001) support 'after' than non-PN patients. Neutropenic fever and longer hospital stay were more frequent among PN vs non-PN recipients (P<0.001). Differences in 5-year mortality were not apparent. The findings fail to support clinical benefits of PN administration during auto-SCT for myeloma. Further study is needed to discern if hyperglycemia or feeding per se was deleterious in this patient population.