Dose-reduced first cycle of chemotherapy for prevention of life-threatening acute complications in nonseminomatous germ cell tumor patients with ultra high tumor markers and/or poor performance status.

Purpose: Patients with metastatic nonseminomatous germ cell tumors (mNSGCT) and a high tumor burden or a poor performance status at initial diagnosis are at risk from potentially life-threatening early complications during or after the first chemotherapy cycle. The outcomes with dose-reduced first cycle of chemotherapy in this population of patients are not well established.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of patients with mNSGCT and International Germ Cell Cancer Collaborative Group (IGCCCG) poor risk features.