Hangeshashinto Improves the Completion Rate of Chemoradiotherapy and the Nutritional Status in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer

Abstract

Purpose: Severe oral and pharyngeal mucositis is one of the most critical toxicities known to lead to the discontinuation of chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for head and neck cancer (HNC). Hangeshashinto (TJ-14) is a Kampo medicine that relieves chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis. We investigated the effect of TJ-14 on mucositis, nutritional status, and the completion rate of CRT. Methods: The study group comprised patients with advanced HNC who were treated with concomitant weekly cisplatin and 70 Gy of radiotherapy. The primary endpoint was the completion rate of chemotherapy, and the secondary endpoints were the grade of mucositis and the nutritional status. Results: A total of 57 patients were included in this study. The completion rate of CRT among patients who were treated with TJ-14 was 91.4%. There was a significant difference in the completion rate of CRT between the groups treated with and without TJ-14 (p = 0.0452). The reduction in body weight was significantly improved from 10.89 to 5.89% with TJ-14 administration (p = 0.003), and the reduction in serum albumin was also significantly decreased from 17.37 to 8.73%. (p = 0.024). Conclusion: This therapy allowed a high completion rate of CRT as well as significant benefits in terms of nutritional status. We plan to carry out a further large-scale study of TJ-14.

Clinicopathological Features and Prognosis of Sinonasal Mucosal Malignant Melanoma: A Retrospective Study of 83 Cases in a Chinese Population

“…Recently, drugs targeting the programmed cell death/PD-L1 pathway, BRAF mutation, and KIT mutation have proven effective in treating cutaneous melanomas. Hopefully, such drugs and other new methods may prove useful in the management of SNMMM in the future [25]. …”

The Traditional Medicine Banhasasim-Tang Depolarizes Pacemaker Potentials of Cultured Interstitial Cells of Cajal through M3 Muscarinic and 5-HT3 Receptors in Murine Small Intestine

“…Banhasasim-tang (BHSST; Hange-shashin-to in Japanese Traditional Kampo Medicine; Banxia-xiexintang in Traditional Chinese Medicine) is a mixture of 8 herbs, including Pinelliae Rhizoma, Scutellariae Radix, Zingiberis Rhizoma Siccus, Ginseng Radix, Glycyrrhizae Radix, Jujubae Fructus, Coptidis Rhizoma, and Zingiberis Rhizoma [1,2]. BHSST has been widely used as an herbal prescription to treat various symptoms; it is used for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antibacterial effects, as well as to treat oral mucositis and cancer [3][4][5][6][7]. In addition, BHSST is an herb with a large variety of uses as a remedy of gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, such as dyspepsia, gastric ulcerative disorders, laryngopharyngitis, colitis, and diarrhea [1,2,8,9].…”

<p>Effects of Topical Hangeshashinto (TJ-14) on Chemotherapy-Induced Oral Mucositis</p>

“…14,15 Hangeshashinto (TJ-14) has been empirically reported to attenuate the side effects associated with cancer chemotherapies. 13,15,16 It comprises seven herbal extracts (Coptis rhizome, ginseng, glycyrrhiza, jujube, Pinellia tuber, processed ginger, and Scutellaria root) and has been approved for the treatment of acute and chronic gastrointestinal catarrh, fermentative diarrhea, and acute gastroenteritis and oral mucositis by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan. 17 TJ-14 reportedly promotes the healing of stomatitis induced by lung, 18 colon, 19 stomach, 20 and head and neck cancer 15 treatments, and suppresses its exacerbation.…”