Schneider, F., Danski, M.T., & Vayego, S.A. (2015). Usage of Calendula officinalis in the prevention and treatment of radiodermatitis: A randomized double-blind controlled clinical trial. Revista da Escola de Enfermagem da USP, 49, 221–228.
To compare Calendula officinalis with essential fatty acids (EFAs) for the prevention and treatment of radiodermatitis among people with head and neck cancers
PHASE OF CARE: Active antitumor treatment
Prospective, random assignment, double-blind, controlled clinical trial
Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) scale for skin toxicity
The proportion of grade 2 radiodermatitis was significantly higher in the EFA group ascompared to the Calendula group (p = 0.012). The EFA group’s Kaplan-Meier survival curve was consistently lower (i.e., fewer survivors) than the Calendula group curve at every point of the survival curve (p = 0.00402). In patients receiving concurrent chemo/radiation therapy, grade 2 dermatitis was more frequent in the EFA group, with grade 1 dermatitis more frequent in the Calendula group (p = 0.0179).
Calendula was more efficacious than EFAs for the prevention and treatment of radiation-induced skin toxicity among individuals with head and neck cancers.
These results neither negate nor support the current Oncology Nursing Society's Putting Evidence into Practice (PEP) guidelines for the use of Calendula in radiodermatitis.