Yamauchi, K., Kogashiwa, Y., Moro, Y., & Kohno, N. (2014). The effect of topical application of royal jelly on chemoradiotherapy-induced mucositis in head and neck cancer: A preliminary study. International Journal of Otolaryngology, 2014, 974967.
To test the effectiveness of royal jelly on the prevention of mucositis in patients with head and neck cancer receiving chemotherapy and radiation
The royal jelly (RJ) was collected from the species Apis mellifera with a primary diet of nectar and pollen from flowers in China. Patients in the intervention group applied 1 g of royal jelly three times per day for the duration of radiation treatment (RT), and patients in the control group did not apply royal jelly. Data were collected during radiation twice per week and one month after radiation was complete.
Randomized, single-blinded (physician-blinded) trial
In the control group, 100% (six) patients experienced grade 3 oral mucositis at the end of radiation compared to the 71.4% (five) who experienced grade 3 in the RJ group and the 28.6% (two) who experienced grade 2 mucositis in the RJ group. RJ delayed the progression to grade 2 mucositis (19 ± 4.1 days in the RJ group, 25.9 ± 9.6 days in the control group, p < .001). RJ also significantly delayed the progression to grade 3 mucositis (37.4 ± 11.8 days in the RJ group, 31 ± 5.8 days in the control group, p < .001).
The results of this study suggest that the topical application of RJ is effective in preventing accelerated mucositis induced by chemoradiotherapy.
Chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer continues to cause significant mucositis, which is debilitating and can impact nutritional status, comfort, and often patients' ability to complete therapy without treatment breaks. The topical administration of RJ offers one intervention that could improve this side effect; however, further studies are needed to support these findings.