Study designs of evaluations included in the review
Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) were eligible for inclusion in the review.
Specific interventions included in the review
Studies that compared adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy with a regimen containing a taxane (paclitaxel and/or docetaxel) versus a regimen without taxanes were eligible for inclusion. The regimens included were heterogeneous.
Participants included in the review
Studies were eligible for inclusion if all participants were women with early breast cancer receiving chemotherapy. The authors did not define 'early' breast cancer. In the included studies, the proportion of women with positive lymph nodes ranged from 41 to 100%.
Outcomes assessed in the review
The authors did not report the outcomes that studies must include in order to be eligible for the review. They reported extracting data on overall survival, relapse-free survival, toxicity, quality of life, and for neoadjuvant studies, clinical and pathological response rates. The median length of follow-up ranged from 43 to 69 months in the included adjuvant studies. Length of follow-up was available for only one of the neoadjuvant studies (35 months).
How were decisions on the relevance of primary studies made?
Two authors screened studies independently based on a list of predefined eligibility criteria. A third author resolved any discrepancies.