Abstract
Mucusomembrane inflammation is common during the treatment of oral cancer by radiation therapy and chemotherapy, and makes repeated application of these treatments difficult. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of the gargle containing ELASE® on alleviating this side effect.
Eleven patients of oral cancer (radiation therapy alone : 9 cases, radiation therapy combined with chemotherapy : 2 cases) were evaluated. 5 V of ELASE® was dissolved in 500 ml of the T-Caine/wasser, the standard prescription at our hospital (1% T-caine solution : 2 ml, simple syrup : 5 ml, 0.01 % acrinol solution : 493 ml) . Following the initiation of anticancer treatment, when pain at the oral mucosa appeared, 100 ml of the above standard regimen with ELASE® was given as gargle 4 to 5 times a day. The control group consisted of 11 patients treated with radiation therapy alone and gargle without ELASE®. During the study period, both subjective (bad breath, dry sensation dysgeusia, and pain) and objective (redness, erosion, and fetor) symptoms were evaluated. In the control group, these symptoms were found to be aggravated or unchanged while in the ELASE® gargle group, some patients demonstrated improvement in pain, erosion and fetor.
