Therapeutic Benefit of Placentrex in the Management of Acute Chemo Radiation Induced Mucositis in Oral Cancer Patients

BACKGROUND: A troublesome and usually unavoidable consequence of Head and Neck chemo radiation is oral mucositis which decreases patients’ compliance and negatively influences the outcome of therapy by increasing overall treatment time. Currently, no single effective recommended treatment exists for this problem and a variety of supportive care measures have been practiced with limited benefits. This study was done to evaluate the therapeutic benefit of Placentrex in the management of oral mucositis seen in oral cancer patients undergoing treatment with concurrent chemoradiation. METHODOLOGY: This study was carried out, as a retrospective analysis, on oral cancer patients undergoing concurrent chemoradiation with weekly Cisplatin regimen treated between Oct 2015 and July 2017. All the patients received 2ml of Inj Placentrex, once daily administered intramuscularly for 4 weeks, NSAIDs, topical analgesics, and mouth wash as treatment for oral mucositis. The results were compared with a historical control group of 40 oral cancer patients who had received treatment prior to the study period without receiving Inj Placentrex as a part of oral mucositis management. RESULTS: Over 60% of the patients in both groups were older than 60 years of age. Buccal mucosa was the predominant sub site of the investigated cancer type. The addition of placentrex resulted in delay in the progression of mucositis, reduction of treatment breaks, regression of pain, and improvement of dysphagia while leading to no adverse effects (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: Placentrex appears to be a beneficial therapeutic option for the management of concurrent chemo-radiation induced acute oral mucositis in oral cancer patients.