Title:The Prevention of Oral Mucositis in Patients with Blood Cancers: Current Concepts and Emerging Landscapes
Volume: 10
Issue: 4
Author(s): Pasquale Niscola, Andrea Tendas, Luca Cupelli, Gianfranco Catalano, Laura Scaramucci, Marco Giovannini, Vito Trinchieri, Atul Sharma, Fabio Efficace, Claudio Cartoni, Daniela Piccioni, Alessio Perrotti, Teresa Dentamaro, Paolo de Fabritiis and Dorothy M.K. Keefe
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Antineoplastic treatments, chemotherapy, hematology, hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, Lactobacillus
brevis CD2, leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, mucositis, oral cavity, palifermin, prevention, radiotherapy, stomatitis
Abstract: Background. The prevention of oral mucositis (OM) in the management of hematological malignancies
continues to represent an unmet clinical need. Addressing this issue has major clinical implications as OM can also greatly
impair patient’s quality of life. Objectives. To review currently available measures and investigational agents to prevent
OM in hematological patients. Methods: we searched for OM and related issues using Medline; the abstract books of the
most important hematological and oncological meetings were also reviewed. Results/Conclusions. Many agents targeting
different mechanisms of mucosal damage have been applied in order to prevent OM; most of them have failed or its
efficacy has not been fully demonstrated. Palifermin is the first pharmaceutical/biological agent approved for the
prevention of OM; its use is currently restricted to patients who have received radiotherapy-containing conditioning
regimens prior to autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. No clear benefit by this agent has been
demonstrated outside of this specific setting and its application should be limited to clinical trials. Other interventions,
such as other growth factors and non mitogenic measures are under investigation or in development and their application
in the hematological setting is expected in the short term.
