scholarly journals Acupuncture for Hormone Therapy–Related Side Effects in Breast Cancer Patients: A GRADE-Assessed Systematic Review and Updated Meta-Analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 153473542094039
Author(s):  
Pan Yuanqing ◽  
Tang Yong ◽  
Liang Haiqian ◽  
Chen Gen ◽  
Xiping Shen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Hormone Therapy ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Hot Flashes ◽  
Gastrointestinal Symptoms ◽  
Risk Of Bias ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients

Purpose: To determine the efficacy of acupuncture on the management of hormone therapy–related side effects in breast cancer patients. Methods: Randomized controlled trials of acupuncture versus a control or placebo in breast cancer patients that examined reductions in therapy-related side effects were retrieved from PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library through April 2020. Data on patient symptoms (hot flashes, fatigue, pain, stiffness, and gastrointestinal symptoms), physical capacity, cytokines, and general psychosomatic well-being were analyzed. We evaluated and analyzed the quality of all included studies with the 5.2 Cochrane Handbook standards using Stata software (version 10.0) and Revman software (version 5.2), respectively. We assessed the risk of bias using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool and evaluated the quality of evidence using the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluations) approach. Results: The pooled results suggested that acupuncture led to moderate improvements in hot flashes, fatigue, and stiffness. No significant differences were observed in pain, gastrointestinal symptoms, Kupperman index scores, Overall quality of life, tumor necrosis factor levels, and interleukin levels. Conclusions: Evidence for outcome indicators of symptom management were downgraded by the GRADE system for inconsistency, indirectness, and imprecision in the included RCTs. Nonetheless, acupuncture is a moderately appropriate alternative therapy for hormone therapy–related side effects in breast cancer patients. However, it still lacks large-sample, multicenter, prospective RCTs. Future research should focus on standardizing comparison groups and treatment methods, be at least single-blinded, assess biologic mechanisms, have adequate statistical power, and involve multiple acupuncturists.

scholarly journals Clinical Benefits of Acupuncture for the Reduction of Hormone Therapy–Related Side Effects in Breast Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 602-618 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanqing Pan ◽  
Kehu Yang ◽  
Xiue Shi ◽  
Haiqian Liang ◽  
Xiping Shen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Hormone Therapy ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Gastrointestinal Symptoms ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients

Importance. Acupuncture can help reduce unpleasant side effects associated with endocrine therapy for breast cancer. Nevertheless, comprehensive evaluation of current evidence from randomized controlled trials(RCTs) is lacking. Objective. To estimate the efficacy of acupuncture for the reduction of hormone therapy-related side effects in breast cancer patients. Evidence review. RCTs of acupuncture in breast cancer patients that examined reductions in hormone therapy–related side effects were retrieved from PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Ovid MEDLINE, and Cochrane Library databases through April 2016. The quality of the included studies was evaluated according to the 5.2 Cochrane Handbook standards, and CONSORT and STRICTA (Revised Standards for Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture) statements. Intervention. Interventions included conventional acupuncture treatment compared with no treatment, placebo, or conventional pharmaceutical medication. Major outcome measures were the alleviation of frequency and symptoms and the presence of hormone therapy–related side effects. Findings/Results. A total of 17 RCTs, including a total of 810 breast cancer patients were examined. The methodological quality of the trials was relatively rigorous in terms of randomization, blinding, and sources of bias. Compared with control therapies, the pooled results suggested that acupuncture had moderate effects in improving stiffness. No significant differences were observed in hot flashes, fatigue, pain, gastrointestinal symptoms, Kupperman index, general well-being, physical well-being, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), and interleukin (IL). Conclusions. Acupuncture therapy appears to be potentially useful in relieving functional stiffness. However, further large-sample trials with evidence-based design are still needed to confirm these findings.

scholarly journals The impact of hyperbaric oxygen therapy on late radiation toxicity and quality of life in breast cancer patients

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marilot C. T. Batenburg ◽  
Wies Maarse ◽  
Femke van der Leij ◽  
Inge O. Baas ◽  
Onno Boonstra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Oxygen Therapy ◽  
Radiation Toxicity ◽  
Breast Pain ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients

Abstract Purpose To evaluate symptoms of late radiation toxicity, side effects, and quality of life in breast cancer patients treated with hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT). Methods For this cohort study breast cancer patients treated with HBOT in 5 Dutch facilities were eligible for inclusion. Breast cancer patients with late radiation toxicity treated with ≥ 20 HBOT sessions from 2015 to 2019 were included. Breast and arm symptoms, pain, and quality of life were assessed by means of the EORTC QLQ-C30 and -BR23 before, immediately after, and 3 months after HBOT on a scale of 0–100. Determinants associated with persistent breast pain after HBOT were assessed. Results 1005/1280 patients were included for analysis. Pain scores decreased significantly from 43.4 before HBOT to 29.7 after 3 months (p < 0.001). Breast symptoms decreased significantly from 44.6 at baseline to 28.9 at 3 months follow-up (p < 0.001) and arm symptoms decreased significantly from 38.2 at baseline to 27.4 at 3 months follow-up (p < 0.001). All quality of life domains improved at the end of HBOT and after 3 months follow-up in comparison to baseline scores. Most prevalent side effects of HBOT were myopia (any grade, n = 576, 57.3%) and mild barotrauma (n = 179, 17.8%). Moderate/severe side effects were reported in 3.2% (n = 32) of the patients. Active smoking during HBOT and shorter time (i.e., median 17.5 vs. 22.0 months) since radiotherapy were associated with persistent breast pain after HBOT. Conclusion Breast cancer patients with late radiation toxicity reported reduced pain, breast and arm symptoms, and improved quality of life following treatment with HBOT.

A double-blind, randomized cross-over trial of venlafaxine versus clonidine to treat hot flashes in breast cancer patients

2007 ◽  
Vol 25 (18_suppl) ◽  
pp. 9083-9083
Author(s):  
C. Mom ◽  
C. Buijs ◽  
P. H. Willemse ◽  
H. Boezen ◽  
J. Maurer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Hot Flashes ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Hot Flash ◽  
History Of ◽  
Loss Of Appetite ◽  
To Receive

9083 Background: Breast cancer patients who become postmenopausal due to their treatment can experience more frequent and severe hot flashes than healthy postmenopausal women. Estrogens are considered to be contra-indicated. Venlafaxine and clonidine are both used to alleviate hot flashes, with different side effects. This study compared side effects, efficacy and patient preference. Methods: In a double-blind, cross-over study women <60 years, with a history of breast cancer, and experiencing at least 14 hot flashes/week were randomized to receive venlafaxine 75 mg od (and placebo bid) for 8 weeks, followed by a 2 week wash-out period, and 8 weeks of clonidine 0.025 mg bid (and placebo od) or vice versa. Hot flash frequency and hot flash score (frequency × severity) were recorded in a diary and side effects were scored using a questionnaire during the 2nd and 8th week of both treatment periods, and these were compared to a baseline week. Results: Sixty patients were randomized to start with venlafaxine (n=30) and clonidine (n=30), 40 completed both treatment periods. Premature treatment discontinuation occurred in 15/59 patients during venlafaxine and in 5/53 during clonidine due to side effects (p<0.05). The main side effects of venlafaxine were nausea and headache, and of clonidine dry mouth. In the 8th week of treatment women reported more loss of appetite (24% vs 4%; p=0.03) and improved sleeping (55% vs 75%; p=0.03) with venlafaxine. A =50% reduction in hot flash score was found in 21 (49%) and 26 (55%) of the patients with venlafaxine and clonidine respectively (ns). The decrease in hot flash score was most marked in the first treatment period. At study completion 20 (33%) of the patients chose to continue clonidine, and 17 (29%) preferred venlafaxine (ns), whereas 23 (38%) declined further treatment. Conclusions: Venlafaxine and clonidine are both moderately and equally effective in the reduction of hot flashes. Side effects are the main reason for discontinuation, occurring more often during treatment with venlafaxine. No significant financial relationships to disclose.

scholarly journals EVA-Scalp: Evaluation of Patient Satisfaction with a Scalp Cooling Device to Prevent Chemotherapy-Induced Alopecia in Breast Cancer Patients

Breast Care ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 171-177
Author(s):  
Franz-Ferdinand Bitto ◽  
Alexander König ◽  
Thuy  Phan-Brehm ◽  
Thomas Vallbracht ◽  
Julian Gregor Koch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Patient Satisfaction ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Scalp Cooling ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Patient Selection Criteria

Purpose: Scalp cooling (SC) offers a chance to reduce hair loss (HL), but patient satisfaction, the effect on well-being, as well as patient selection criteria have not been sufficiently assessed yet. Methods: In the EVAScalp trial, SC was offered to 70 breast cancer patients who received chemotherapy between November 2015 and September 2018. For SC, the Paxman-Orbis-II System was used. Satisfaction was measured by a questionnaire evaluating the level of depression with the WHO-5 well-being index (WHO-5) plus questions addressing the patient’s experiences and side effects using the SC device. To evaluate efficacy, documentation by photo, by a physician, and by an HL-diary was conducted. Results: Regarding efficacy, a significant difference between chemotherapy regimens is seen. Anthracycline-based therapies led to a stop of SC in 71% of the patients, whereas taxane-based therapies without anthracyclines were associated with a high acceptance of SC, and 88% of patients with paclitaxel-based therapies continued SC throughout their chemotherapy. Overall, only 7.69% of the patients stopped because of side effects. As an indicator for quality of life, WHO-5 was higher (65.8%) in patients with successful SC compared to in patients who stopped SC because of HL or side effects (only 53.0%). The majority of patients (82.22%) with successful SC would recommend SC to other patients. Conclusions: Patients tolerated SC as long as HL was successfully prevented. The well-being of patients with successful SC was significantly higher than that of patients who stopped SC prematurely. In general, SC is a promising approach and improves patient well-being, but there are still limitations to its utility depending on the chemotherapy regimen used.

scholarly journals Information Needs of Breast Cancer Patients: Theory-Generating Meta-Synthesis (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hongru Lu ◽  
Juan Xie ◽  
Lynette Hammond Gerido ◽  
Ying Cheng ◽  
Ya Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Information Needs ◽  
Disease Status ◽  
Cochrane Library ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Moderating Variables ◽  
Types Of Information

BACKGROUND Breast cancer has become one of the most frequently diagnosed carcinomas and the leading cause of cancer deaths. The substantial growth in the number of breast cancer patients has put great pressure on health services. Meanwhile, the information patients need has increased and become more complicated. Therefore, a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of their information needs is urgently needed to improve the quality of health care. However, previous studies related to the information needs of breast cancer patients have focused on different perspectives and have only contributed to individual results. A systematic review and synthesis of breast cancer patients’ information needs is critical. OBJECTIVE This paper aims to systematically identify, evaluate, and synthesize existing primary qualitative research on the information needs of breast cancer patients. METHODS Web of Science, EBSCO, Scopus, ProQuest, PubMed, PsycINFO, The Cochrane Library, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature were searched on February 12 and July 9, 2019, to collect relevant studies. A Google Scholar search, interpersonal network recommendations, and reference chaining were also conducted. Eligible studies included qualitative or mixed-methods studies focusing on the information needs (across the cancer continuum) of breast cancer patients or their social networks. Subsequently, a Critical Appraisals Skills Programme checklist was used to assess the quality of included research. The results, findings, and discussions were extracted. Data analysis was guided by the theory-generating meta-synthesis and grounded theory approach. RESULTS Three themes, 19 categories, and 55 concepts emerged: (1) incentives (physical abnormality, inquiry from others, subjective norm, and problems during appointments); (2) types of information needs (prevention, etiology, diagnosis, clinical manifestation, treatment, prognosis, impact and resumption of normal life, scientific research, and social assistance); (3) moderating variables (attitudes, health literacy, demographic characteristics, disease status, as well as political and cultural environment). The studies revealed that the information needs of breast cancer patients were triggered by different incentives. Subsequently, the patients sought a variety of information among different stages of the cancer journey. Five types of variables were also found to moderate the formation of information needs. CONCLUSIONS This study contributes to a thorough model of information needs among breast cancer patients and provides practical suggestions for health and information professionals.

scholarly journals Evaluation of Drug Side Effects Chemotherapy on Quality of Life (QOL) Breast Cancer Patients at Hospital X in Jakarta

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Sondang Khairani ◽  
Sesilia A Keban ◽  
Meyke Afrianty
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Cancer Type ◽  
Drug Side Effects ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Chemotherapy Drugs

Breast cancer is the number one cancer type discovered at women in the world. Most causes are genetic factors and hormonal factors. One cancer treatments with chemotherapy. Chemotherapy drugs active in cells dividing and reproducing, but cells normally to be affected by chemotherapy and side effects from chemotherapy drugs affect quality of life. The aim of the study to evaluate side effects of chemotherapy drugs on the quality of life of breast cancer patients. Sampling technique observational prospective breast cancer patients with completed the chemotherapy cycle from September 2017 to April 2018 with descriptive analysis and statistics by looking correlation between drug side effects and Quality of Life (QoL). Results of the study were side effects of fatigue 100%, nausea 67,5%, vomiting 60%, no appetite 63,75%, fever 42,5%, joint pain 43,75%, diarrhea 16,25%, difficulty swallowing 16,25%, allergies 5%, itching 1,25%, mouth sores 3,75%, swollen right hand 1,25%, constipation 3,75%. QoL results are physical 6,2%; psychology 5,3%; social 4,9%; spiritual 6,8%. Results of Sperman test showed no correlation between the side effects of chemotherapy and QoL P> 0,05. This study shows that there is no relationship between the side effects drug chemotherapy and QoL in breast cancer patients.

scholarly journals The Chinese herb Xiaoaiping protects against breast cancer chemotherapy-induced alopecia and other side effects: a randomized controlled trial

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (6) ◽  
pp. 2607-2614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fujie Yu ◽  
Yuanmei Li ◽  
Jiaqun Zou ◽  
Lisha Jiang ◽  
Chun Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Side Effects ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Chinese Herb ◽  
Nausea And Vomiting ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Wbc Count

Objective To investigate the effects of the Chinese herbal medicine Xiaoaiping to treat chemotherapy-induced side effects in breast cancer patients. Methods Ninety-three adult patients who attended our hospital and met the entry criteria from January 2016 to December 2017 were included. Patients were randomly divided into the control group (routine chemotherapy only) and the combined group (routine chemotherapy and Xiaoaiping). Demographic data and clinical variables were collected, and side effects including alopecia, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, white blood cell (WBC) count, aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels, and the quality of life were evaluated. Results Basic clinical characteristics were not different between the groups. There were significantly fewer patients with alopecia grade 3–4, but significantly more patients with alopecia grade 1–2, in the combined group compared with the control group. Disease-free time for alopecia was longer in the combined compared with the control group. Overall, the side effects were significantly more serious in the control compared with the combined group. Patients in the combined group had better quality of life than the control patients. Conclusion Xiaoaiping can improve alopecia, nausea and vomiting, and diarrhea symptoms, WBC count, AST levels, and the quality of life in breast cancer patients.

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