Responses of Blood System to Doxorubicin/Docetaxel Chemotherapy in Patients with Breast Cancer

We studied the effects of combined chemotherapy with doxorubicin/docetaxel on erythroid and granulocytic hematopoietic lineages with particular attention focused on their recovery in patients with stages III-IV breast cancer. Intensification of differentiation of erythroid and granulocytic CFU (even under conditions of their suppressed proliferation) provided the increase in the content of mature and morphologically differentiated elements in the bone marrow and peripheral blood. High proliferative activity of erythroid and granulomonocytic precursors resulted from enhanced production of hematopoiesis-stimulating activities by microenvironment elements.