Background: Recent studies have shown poorer outcomes for patients with prognostic score above 12. Authors have proposed categorizing these patients as ultra high-risk to emphasize the need for a different treatment regimen. Objectives: This study was conducted to compare the clinical response of high-risk and ultra high-risk Gestational Trophoblastic Neoplasia (GTN) patients who were managed at the Philippine General Hospital, from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2015, after receiving the EMACO regimen as first line treatment. Methods: All patients diagnosed with metastatic high-risk GTN who were managed at the Philippine General Hospital from January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2015 and given the EMACO regimen as first-line treatment were included in the study. Patients were divided into high-risk disease or patients with a WHO prognostic score of 7-11 and ultra high-risk disease or patients with WHO prognostic score of 12 and above. Using the Z-test on two proportion, treatment outcome between the two groups were compared. Results: A total of 57 patients diagnosed with metastatic high-risk GTN were included in the study. Of these, 35 or 61% were classified as high-risk while 22 or 39% were ultra high-risk. The primary remission rate of the high-risk group was 89% compared to 77% for the ultra high-risk group. The difference was not statistically significant (p=0.2542). Out of the 57 patients included in the study, 48 patients achieved remission after being treated with EMACO. An additional 4 patients achieved remission after being shifted to EPEMA due to resistance to the first line agent. All patients were alive after one year of follow-up, giving a one-year survival rate of 91.2%. Conclusion The result of this study showed a relatively higher remission rate for high-risk (89%) than ultra highrisk GTN (77%) with EMACO as first line chemotherapy regimen, but statistical analysis revealed no significant difference. This finding suggests that EMACO may still be used as first line regimen for ultra high-risk GTN to attain remission.
Gestational Trophoblastic Disease ; EMA-CO protocol ; Etoposide ; Dactinomycin ; Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols ; Cyclophosphamide ; Methotrexate ; Vincristine