TORONTO, May 14 -- Half a teaspoon of ground ginger a day can significantly reduce the nausea associated with chemotherapy, researchers found.
In a large randomized trial, the spice reduced nausea by 40% when taken along with standard antinausea medications, according to Julie Ryan, Ph.D., of the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y.
Dr. Ryan told reporters that patients in the study took the spice in capsules, but it should "theoretically" also work in cookies or soft drinks -- as long as the ginger flavor isn't artificial.
Action Points
- Explain to interested patients that ginger is widely used as a folk remedy for upset stomach and diarrhea.
- Note that this randomized controlled trial found it was effective, in combination with standard antiemetic drugs, in controlling nausea during chemotherapy.
- Note that this study will be presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
The spice -- usually in the form of ginger tea or ginger ale -- is widely used as a folk remedy for upset stomach and diarrhea.
Dr. Ryan's study -- discussed during a curtain-raiser press conference for the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology -- is to be presented in Orlando later this month.
Dr. Ryan and her colleagues enrolled 644 cancer patients, most of whom had breast cancer, in their study.
After the patients reported nausea during early cycles of chemotherapy, they were randomized to get either ginger or placebo, along with standard 5-HT3 receptor antagonist antiemetics, such as ondansetron (Zofran) and granisetron (Kytril).
Participants were divided into four arms -- those getting placebo capsules and those getting 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 grams of ginger.
The ginger was started three days before the beginning of a chemotherapy cycle, and the antiemetics were begun in the first day of each cycle, Dr. Ryan said.
Four times a day during chemotherapy, she said, patients recorded their feelings of nausea on a seven-point scale, ranging from no nausea to extremely nauseated.
Dr. Ryan said average nausea scores were high on all four arms on the morning of the first day of a chemo cycle, but dropped significantly (at P=0.003) for the three ginger arms during the day.
The lower nausea scores were maintained for subsequent days of the cycle, she said.
Dr. Ryan said the two lower doses of the spice appeared to be more effective than the 1.5-gram dose. A gram, she said, is equivalent to about half a teaspoon of ground ginger, dried or fresh.
The research is "an interesting and rigorous study in the field of complementary medicine," said Douglas Blayney, M.D., of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center in Ann Arbor and the society's president-elect.
He added that the study result is "an important step forward in improving quality of care for the 70% of patients who undergo chemotherapy and experience nausea and vomiting."
| The study was supported by the National Cancer Institute.
Dr. Ryan did not report any conflicts. |