A Simplified Diagnostic Classification Scheme of Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy

Background and Objective. The main purpose of this study was to develop a simple automatic diagnostic classification scheme for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy. METHODS: This was a prospective cohort study that enrolled patients with colorectal or gynecologic cancer post chemotherapy for more than 1 year. The patients underwent laboratory examinations (nerve conduction studies and quantitative sensory tests), and a questionnaire about the quality of life. An unsupervised classification algorithm was used to classify the patients into groups using a small number of variables derived from the laboratory tests. A panel of five neurologists also diagnosed the types of neuropathies according to the laboratory tests. The results by the unsupervised classification algorithm and the neurologists were compared. RESULTS: The neurologists' diagnoses showed much higher rates of entrapment syndromes (66.1%) and radiculopathies (55.1%) than polyneuropathy (motor/sensory: 33.1%/29.7%). A multivariate analysis showed that the questionnaire was not significantly correlated with the results of quantitative sensory tests (r = 0.27) or the neurologists' diagnoses (r = 0.27) or the neurologists' diagnoses ( CONCLUSION: The results of our unsupervised classification algorithm based on three variables of laboratory tests correlated well with the neurologists' diagnoses.