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Outpatient pharmacy services were established since June 2009 for educating about the signs and symptoms that required treatment, explaining how to receive an emergency service, improving a patient's adherence, and managing side effects. In this study, we evaluated the usefulness of one of our outpatient pharmacy services, which aims to help patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy including S-1 monotherapy for gastric cancer. In total, 34 and 80 patients received S-1 monotherapy without or with the intervention of outpatient pharmacy services, respectively; additionally, the median ages of the former and latter were 68 and 65 years, respectively. The treatment completion rates(82.4% versus 67.5%)were similar between the 2 groups(odds ratio[OR]: 0.45, 95% confidence interval[CI]: 0.16-1.21, p=0.106). Their emergency visit rates were 23.5% and 8.8%(OR: 0.31, 95% Cl: 0.10-0.94, p0.05). Emergency hospitalization was required for 8.8% and 0% of the population from each group(OR: 0.00, 95% CI: not significant, p0.05). We suggest that outpatient pharmacy services are useful because they are likely to improve a patient's safety.

Steroid is a key drug in cancer chemotherapy-induced emesis. However, it may sometimes cause inadequately controlled hyperglycemia. Ipragliflozin is a novel selective sodium-dependent glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor of urinary glucose excretion. In this case, we controlled steroid-induced hyperglycemia by administering ipragliflozin. The case was a 47-year-old man who was diagnosed with Stage IV esophageal cancer (T3N2M1). He had type 2 diabetes. He was treated with cisplatin (70 mg/m2; day 1) and 5-FU (700 mg/m2; days 1-4) as radiochemotherapy. Intravenous infusion of dexamethasone (9.9 mg) was administered on day 1, followed by additional doses (6.6 mg) for 3 days, as one of the emetic therapies. He received intensive insulin therapy during the first course of chemotherapy, but had Grade 3 hyperglycemia regardless. For the next treatment course, we additionally administered ipragliflozin along with dexamethasone. As a result, the hyperglycemia subsided to Grade 2. These findings suggest that ipragliflozin suppresses steroid-induced hyperglycemia.