Melatonin offers a relatively safe option to support patients undergoing active treatment

Reference
Design
Participants
Cancer Type | Treatment + Mlt | Treatment Alone |
Lung | ||
Cisplatin + Etoposide | 171 | 180 |
Gemzar | 14 | 12 |
Breast | ||
Mitoxantrone | 27 | 28 |
Doxorubicin | 21 | 19 |
Paclitaxel | 7 | 6 |
GI | ||
5FU + Folinic acid | 26 | 30 |
Irinotecan | 14 | 16 |
Head/Neck | ||
5FU + Cisplatin | 13 | 14 |
HCC | ||
TACE | 50 | 50 |
Glioblastoma | ||
Radiation Therapy | 14 | 16 |
Study Medication and Dosage
Outcome Measures
Key Findings
Outcome | # Studies incl of 8 |
Melatonin Result |
Group Total n |
Control Result |
Group Total n |
RR | P value |
Overall remission rate | 8 | 32.6% | 374 | 16.5% | 387 | 1.95 | <0.00001 |
1-yr survival | 5 | 52.2% | 291 | 28.4% | 299 | 1.90 | 0.001 |
Thrombocytopenia | 5a | 2.2% | 279 | 19.7% | 289 | 0.13 | <0.00001 |
Neurotoxicity | 5a | 2.5% | 279 | 15.2% | 289 | 0.19 | <0.0001 |
Fatigue | 5a | 17.2% | 279 | 49.1% | 289 | 0.37 | <0.00001 |
Practice Implications
An oddity of this meta-analysis, and likely any meta-analysis done on the use of melatonin in the oncology setting, is the repetition of a single primary investigator across multiple studies.
Natural therapies should be assessed with a similar set of criteria in the oncology setting; for the same reasons, patients have few options. Because of its relatively low cost, excellent patient tolerability, and mild toxicity profile, melatonin should be considered in any integrative oncology plan for solid tumors. The results of Seely’s meta-analysis further support this conclusion and offer potentially broader applications. Additionally, melatonin plays an important role in the setting of breast cancer development and prognosis. Tina Kaczor’s article, “An Overview of Melatonin and Breast Cancer,” published by this journal in February 2010, provides an excellent synopsis of the information.14
For more research involving integrative oncology, click here.
References
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- Lissoni P. Biochemotherapy with immunomodulating pineal hormones other than melatonin: 5-methoxytryptamine as a new oncostatic pineal agent. Pathol Biol (Paris). 2007;55(3-4):198-200.
- Lissoni P, Barni S, Mandala M, et al. Decreased toxicity and increased efficacy of cancer chemotherapy using the pineal hormone melatonin in metastatic solid tumour patients with poor clinical status. Eur J Cancer. 1999;35(12):1688-1692.
- Lissoni P, Chilelli M, Villa S, Cerizza L, Tancini G. Five years survival in metastatic non-small cell lung cancer patients treated with chemotherapy alone or chemotherapy and melatonin: A randomized trial. J Pineal Res. 2003;35(1):12-15.
- Lissoni P, Meregalli S, Nosetto L, et al. Increased survival time in brain glioblastomas by a radioneuroendocrine strategy with radiotherapy plus melatonin compared to radiotherapy alone. Oncology. 1996;53(1):43-46.
- Lissoni P, Paolorossi F, Ardizzoia A, et al. A randomized study of chemotherapy with cisplatin plus etoposide versus chemoendocrine therapy with cisplatin, etoposide and the pineal hormone melatonin as a first-line treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients in a poor clinical state. J Pineal Res. 1997;23(1):15-19.
- Lissoni P, Tancini G, Barni S, et al. Treatment of cancer chemotherapy-induced toxicity with the pineal hormone melatonin. Support Care Cancer. 1997;5(2):126-129.
- Yan JJ, Shen F, Wang K, Wu MC. Patients with advanced primary hepatocellular carcinoma treated by melatonin and transcatheter arterial chemoembolization: A prospective study. Hepatobiliary Pancreat Dis Int. 2002;1(2):183-186.
- Seely D, Wu P, Fritz H, et al. Melatonin as adjuvant cancer care with and without chemotherapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials. Integr Cancer Ther. 2011.
- American Cancer Society. Placebo effect what is the placebo effect?. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/TreatmentTypes/placebo-effect. Updated 2010. Accessed 7/4, 2012.
- Allegra CJ, Yothers G, O'Connell MJ, et al. Phase III trial assessing bevacizumab in stages II and III carcinoma of the colon: results of NSABP protocol C-08. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(1):11-16.
- Venderbosch S, Doornebal J, Teerenstra S, Lemmens W, Punt CJ, Koopman M. Outcome of first line systemic treatment in elderly compared to younger patients with metastatic colorectal cancer: A retrospective analysis of the CAIRO and CAIRO2 studies of the Dutch Colorectal Cancer Group (DCCG). Acta Oncol. 2012 Jul 16. [Epub ahead of print]
- Dahl O, Fluge Ø, Carlsen E, et al. Final results of a randomised phase III study on adjuvant chemotherapy with 5 FU and levamisol incolon and rectum cancer stage II and III by the Norwegian Gastrointestinal Cancer Group. Acta Oncol. 2009;48(3):368-376.
- Kaczor T. An overview of melatonin and breast cancer. Nat Med Journal. 2010;2(2). Available at http://naturalmedicinejournal.com/article_content.asp?article=108