Oncoxin nutritional supplement in the management of chemotherapy- and/or radiotherapy-associated oral mucositis

Oral mucositis (OM) is a common and potentially dangerous complication of anticancer treatment. Since there are only few therapeutic options for OM, there is a need to identify novel approaches to its management and prevention. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of Oncoxin (ONCX), a nutritional supplement that contains microelements, vitamins, amino acids and certain biologically active substances of natural origin, in cancer patients who receive chemotherapy, radiotherapy or a combination of the two. A total of 15 male and female patients (aged 45–75 years) with malignant neoplasms, who had been prescribed radiotherapy, chemotherapy or a combination of the two, with an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status score ≤3, and grade 2–3 OM based on the World Health Organization (WHO) Oral Toxicity Scale, were enrolled in a 20-day study; 10 patients were in the ONCX group and 5 served as controls. The patients were allowed to use any anticancer treatment and any type of OM care. In addition to their current treatment, patients in the ONCX group used 25 ml of the ONCX nutritional supplement twice daily for 20 days. The mean WHO Oral Toxicity Scale grade decreased by 41% in the ONCX group after ~7 days from the beginning of the study compared with minimal change in the control group. At the end of the study, the difference was even more prominent, with a 73 and 20% decrease from baseline in the ONCX and control groups, respectively (P<0.001). During the entire trial period, patients in the ONCX group were able to eat normally during 65% of the time, in contrast to only 29% in the control group (P=0.04). There were no statistically significant changes in absolute body mass, or in the number of days with normal appetite. This was a pilot study aiming to show the benefits of the ONCX nutritional supplement in OM, and the results demonstrated that ONCX rapidly improved the symptoms of OM and helped to maintain normal eating habits in patients undergoing cancer treatment.