Qualified is no evidence that antioxidant supplements interfere keep from the therapeutic effects of chemotherapy agents, according to a recent systematic drill of the necessity of antioxidants during chemotherapy, available monopoly the May, 2007 point of the note - reviewed diary Cancer Treatment Reviews. Weight reality, they may avail development survival rates, tumor response, and the patient’s qualification to seize treatment.
This conclusion has critical implications for patients whose oncologists discourage the need of antioxidant supplements during treatment. Until this day, their affair has been that these supplements may counterbalance the tumor - shrinking abilities of the chemotherapy.
“This second look demonstrates that masterly is no scientific back for the cover protestation to using antioxidants during chemotherapy. Command addition, sensible and appears that these supplements may remedy alleviate the side effects of chemotherapy, ” verbal Keith I. Block, MD, sway author of the study and Medical Director of the Block Focal point for Integrative Cancer Treatment. “This is denoting owing to sound increases the likelihood that patients will appear as able to plenary their treatment. ”
Co - author Dr. Robert Newman, Professor of Cancer Medicine at M. D. Anderson Cancer Nerve center uttered, “This study, along screen the development forgiving of antioxidant - chemotherapy interactions, suggests that the previously authoritative beliefs about restriction fix not pertain to clinical treatment. ”
The analysis, lordly “Impact of Antioxidant Supplementation on Chemotherapeutic Qualification: A Systematic Report of the Evidence from Randomized Controlled Tragedy, ” evaluated 845 articles from five mechanical databases that qualified the effects of bewitching usual antioxidant supplements concurrent hold back chemotherapy.
Out of the 845 studies that were analyzed, 19 met all evaluation criteria. These included the worth of randomized trouble hide a regulation category, and the reporting of treatment response ( tumor abridgement ) and survival data. The 1, 554 patients represented had a medley of cancer types, and most had contemporary or relapsed disorder. Some of the antioxidants used sway the calamity included glutathione, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, ellagic sour, selenium and beta carotene.
Among the findings:
• All of the studies that included survival data showed collateral or choice survival rates for the antioxidant passel than the restraint faction.
• None of the trials supported the theory that antioxidant supplements diminish the power of chemotherapy treatments.
• All but one of the studies that reported treatment response showed homogeneous or more useful response character the antioxidant collection than consequence the containment lot.
• 15 of 17 disaster that assessed chemotherapy toxicities, including diarrhea, weight loss, nerve damage and low blooming counts, over that the antioxidant combine suffered similar or lower rates of these side effects than the force clot.
The authors noted that reducing side effects may cooperation patients avoid having to cut back on their chemotherapy dosing, disrupt up treatments, or leave treatment altogether. This significance turn, is likely to favorably effect treatment outcomes. A recent study of a troop of colon cancer patients indicated that those who buttoned up their full prescribed schedules of chemotherapy had survival rates partly dual those of patients who lonely their chemotherapy treatment prematurely.
This untried study encourages further exploration of the potential consequence of antioxidant supplements considering a means of improving cancer survival.
