Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response
Background Weight loss is a common observation in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients and the severity depends on the modalities used. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of providing two capsules of fish oil supplement each day during the course of curative radiotherapy for...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc.
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Asian Journal of Oncology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.1055/s-0042-1750019 |
| _version_ | 1811331962431864832 |
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| author | Sanath Hegde Suresh Rao Rhea Katherine D'souza Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga |
| author_facet | Sanath Hegde Suresh Rao Rhea Katherine D'souza Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga |
| author_sort | Sanath Hegde |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background Weight loss is a common observation in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients and the severity depends on the modalities used. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of providing two capsules of fish oil supplement each day during the course of curative radiotherapy for HNC patients.
Materials and Methods This was a retrospective single-center study, and files of HNC patients treated with radiotherapy between the months of January 2015 and March 2015 were evaluated. Data on gender, age, tumor, treatment details, adverse effects, weight before and at the end of the treatment, and treatment response were obtained from the patient files. The data collected were entered into Excel sheet and subjected to statistical analysis using chi-square tests, unpaired t-test, and analysis of variance with post hoc Tukey test. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant.
Results Records of 68 patients treated during the study period with radiation for HNC and admitted to the inpatient facility throughout the treatment period were retrospectively reviewed. Majority of the patients had advanced stage tumors. There was no difference in the initial weight of the patients in the two groups while a significant difference was seen in the final weight (p = 0.007). The number of patients with severe weight loss (>5 kg) was more in the control than in the fish oil cohort (68.89 vs. 43.48) and was significant (p = 0.042). In addition to this, the incidence of mucositis was delayed and also lesser in severity in the cohorts that had received fish oil. At the dose used, fish oil capsules did not have any adverse effects and importantly there was no significant difference in treatment response.
Conclusion The results of the study indicate that administering fish oil capsules was effective in arresting weight loss and delaying and mitigating mucositis in HNC patients undergoing curative radiotherapy. Fish oil capsule has good safety profile, was devoid of any toxic effects, and has a good clinical application value. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:28:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-801dd5c63245479b87cac0829e89ea8d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2454-6798 2455-4618 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T16:28:47Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Asian Journal of Oncology |
| spelling | doaj.art-801dd5c63245479b87cac0829e89ea8d2022-12-22T02:39:38ZengThieme Medical Publishers, Inc.Asian Journal of Oncology2454-67982455-46182022-07-0110.1055/s-0042-1750019Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment ResponseSanath Hegde0Suresh Rao1Rhea Katherine D'souza2Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga3Department of Radiation Oncology, Mangalore Institute of Oncology, Mangalore, Karnataka, IndiaDepartment of Radiation Oncology, Mangalore Institute of Oncology, Mangalore, Karnataka, IndiaClinical Nutrition, Mangalore Institute of Oncology, Mangalore, Karnataka, IndiaMangalore Institute of Oncology, Pumpwell, Mangalore, Karnataka, IndiaBackground Weight loss is a common observation in head and neck cancer (HNC) patients and the severity depends on the modalities used. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of providing two capsules of fish oil supplement each day during the course of curative radiotherapy for HNC patients. Materials and Methods This was a retrospective single-center study, and files of HNC patients treated with radiotherapy between the months of January 2015 and March 2015 were evaluated. Data on gender, age, tumor, treatment details, adverse effects, weight before and at the end of the treatment, and treatment response were obtained from the patient files. The data collected were entered into Excel sheet and subjected to statistical analysis using chi-square tests, unpaired t-test, and analysis of variance with post hoc Tukey test. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results Records of 68 patients treated during the study period with radiation for HNC and admitted to the inpatient facility throughout the treatment period were retrospectively reviewed. Majority of the patients had advanced stage tumors. There was no difference in the initial weight of the patients in the two groups while a significant difference was seen in the final weight (p = 0.007). The number of patients with severe weight loss (>5 kg) was more in the control than in the fish oil cohort (68.89 vs. 43.48) and was significant (p = 0.042). In addition to this, the incidence of mucositis was delayed and also lesser in severity in the cohorts that had received fish oil. At the dose used, fish oil capsules did not have any adverse effects and importantly there was no significant difference in treatment response. Conclusion The results of the study indicate that administering fish oil capsules was effective in arresting weight loss and delaying and mitigating mucositis in HNC patients undergoing curative radiotherapy. Fish oil capsule has good safety profile, was devoid of any toxic effects, and has a good clinical application value.http://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.1055/s-0042-1750019head and neck cancerradiationfish oilmucositisweight loss |
| spellingShingle | Sanath Hegde Suresh Rao Rhea Katherine D'souza Manjeshwar Shrinath Baliga Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response Asian Journal of Oncology head and neck cancer radiation fish oil mucositis weight loss |
| title | Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response |
| title_full | Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response |
| title_fullStr | Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response |
| title_full_unstemmed | Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response |
| title_short | Supplementation with Cod Liver Oil Capsules Reduces Weight Loss and Mucositis in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Undergoing Curative Radiotherapy without Affecting the Treatment Response |
| title_sort | supplementation with cod liver oil capsules reduces weight loss and mucositis in head and neck cancer patients undergoing curative radiotherapy without affecting the treatment response |
| topic | head and neck cancer radiation fish oil mucositis weight loss |
| url | http://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.1055/s-0042-1750019 |
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