Pemetrexed-induced eyelid edema: incidence and clinical manifestations.

BACKGROUND Pemetrexed-induced eyelid edema is a rare side-effect of pemetrexed treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS Retrospective analysis of the incidence and severity of eyelid edema was conducted in patients treated with pemetrexed in a single institution. RESULTS Eighty-six patients received pemetrexed-containing chemotherapy either as a single agent (45 patients) or in combination with cis- or carboplatin (41 patients). Two patients (2.3%) with stage IV non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) presented the edema typically localized in the lower eyelid after first-line treatment with carboplatin-pemetrexed. The edema remained identical in both patients during treatment and regressed in one patient in whom treatment was withdrawn. No other localizations of edema were observed in these patients. CONCLUSION Pemetrexed-induced eyelid edema may be more frequent than originally reported. The physiopathological mechanism and, as a consequence, the treatment and/or prevention of this apparently benign side-effect remains unknown.