New Trial Tests Gabapentin As Treatment for Mucositis, Replacing Opioids
A vast majority of patients being treated with chemoradiation for head and neck cancers will develop significant mucositis, a painful condition that can lead to difficulty with nutrition and interrupted treatment.
A new trial available at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, organized by the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology Foundation, is looking to determine the efficacy of using gabapentin for pain mitigation. This would be a change from the current use of opioids for pain, as up to 50% of patients prescribed opioids for pain become chronic users up to one year after initial treatment.
Initial studies show using escalating doses of gabapentin can increase the time to first time opioid use and can eliminate opioid use in up to two-thirds of patients, explains Anurag Singh, MD, Director of Radiation research at Roswell Park.
Gabapentin, a medication typically associated with seizures, “has properties that diminish nerve conduction and can therefore reduce pain” associated with mucositis, he says.
The national trial is looking to recruit up to 200 patients who are suffering from mucositis from head and neck cancer treatment.
“If successful, this study may establish a new standard of care in the treatment of mucositis for head and neck cancer patients,” he says.
Professor of Oncology Director of Radiation Research, Department of Radiation Medicine Co-Leader, Cell Stress and Biophysical Therapies Program Associate Dean of Graduate Medical Education, Research
Dr. Anurag Singh is a Professor of Oncology and Director of Radiation Research, Department of Radiation Medicine at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. His areas of expertise are breast cancer, head and neck cancer, lung cancer, ...
