What this means for patients
Research stage: not yet standard treatment.
This small study looked at adding a traditional Chinese medicine compound to standard treatment for women receiving chemotherapy after breast cancer surgery. It reports that patients given the compound had higher levels of bifidobacteria and CD4+ T cells and fewer side effects than those who did not receive it. These are early results from one study, so the approach is not yet standard treatment and more research is needed before it can be widely recommended.
BACKGROUND:
POSTOPERATIVE chemotherapy for breast cancer often leads to intestinal dysbiosis and immune suppression. Traditional Chinese medicine shows potential in regulating gut microbiota and enhancing immune function, offering a promising adjunctive therapeutic strategy.
OBJECTIVES:
To explore the effects of a traditional Chinese medicine compound on the recovery of intestinal bifidobacteria and CD4+ T-cell activation in breast cancer patients undergoing postoperative chemotherapy.
METHODS:
Female patients with newly diagnosed breast cancer were randomly assigned to a control group (triamcinolone tablets) and an observation group (control treatment plus kidney-tonifying and compound traditional Chinese medicine soup). Intestinal flora and immune indices were measured and analyzed using SPSS 22.0.
RESULTS:
After chemotherapy, the observation group showed significant increases in bifidobacteria to 9.01±1.49 lg (CFU/g) and in CD4+ T-cell counts to 969/μL. The expression levels of peripheral blood CD4+ T cells and the differences in S2, nm23 and Her-2 indices were significant between the groups, with the observation group showing greater CD4+ T cell activation. The incidence of adverse reactions was significantly lower in the observation group (P-values: 0.002, 0.006 and 0.030). The observation group also demonstrated better control of gastrointestinal conditions and disease progression (P<0.001).
CONCLUSION:
The traditional Chinese medicine compound effectively maintained intestinal flora balance, promoted beneficial bacterial growth, reduced adverse reactions and offered better therapeutic prospects for breast cancer patients.
Original publication: PubMed. This is the published abstract of the study, in its original English.