Meta-Analysis of Oxaliplatin-Based Chemotherapy Combined With Traditional Medicines for Colorectal Cancer: Contributions of Specific Plants to Tumor Response. (March 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Chen, Menghua; May, Brian H.; Zhou, Iris W.; Xue, Charlie C. L.; Zhang, Anthony L.
• Is Part Of: Integrative cancer therapies. Volume 15:Number 1(2016:Mar.)
• Page Start: 40
• Page End: 59
• Publication Date: 2016-03
• Subjects: colorectal cancer -- oxaliplatin -- traditional medicine -- tumor response -- meta-analysis -- synergistic action; Cancer -- Alternative treatment -- Periodicals; 616.99406
• DOI: 10.1177/1534735415596424
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1534-7354

Abstract

This meta-analysis evaluates the clinical evidence for the addition of traditional medicines (TMs) to oxaliplatin-based regimens for colorectal cancer (CRC) in terms of tumor response rate (TRR). Eight electronic databases were searched for randomized controlled trials of oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy combined with TMs compared to the same oxaliplatin-based regimen. Data on TRR from 42 randomized controlled trials were analyzed using Review Manager 5.1. Studies were conducted in China or Japan. Publication bias was not evident. The meta-analyses suggest that the combination of the TMs with oxaliplatin-based regimens increased TRR in the palliative treatment of CRC (risk ratio [RR] 1.31 [1.20-1.42], I 2 = 0%). Benefits were evident for both injection products (RR 1.36 [1.18-1.57], I 2 = 0%) and orally administered TMs (RR 1.27 [1.15-1.41], I 2 = 0%). Further sensitivity analysis of specific plant-based TMs found that Paeonia, Curcuma, and Sophora produced consistently higher contributions to the RR results. Compounds in each of these TMs have shown growth-inhibitory effects in CRC cell-line studies. Specific combinations of TMs appeared to produce higher contributions to TRR than the TMs individually. Notable among these was the combination of Hedyotis, Astragalus, and Scutellaria.