Study: Ginger can help reduce nausea after chemotherapyBy Liz Szabo, USA TODAYGinger capsules can relieve the nausea caused by chemotherapy, a new study shows.Up to 70% of patients become nauseated after chemo, according to a study of 644 people released Thursday, in advance of the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, which begins in two weeks in Orlando.Although drugs such as Kytril can prevent vomiting, they don't always relieve nausea, says author Julie Ryan, assistant professor of dermatology and radiation oncology at the University of Rochester Medical Center.Ginger, however, reduced patients' nausea levels by half, according to the study, funded by the National Cancer Institute. On a scale of one to seven — in which seven represents the worst nausea — chemo patients given placebos rated their nausea as a 5 or 6, or very nauseous.Those given ginger, however, rated their nausea level as only 2 or 3, Ryan says.Patients took ginger three days before and three days after getting chemo, Ryan says. Patients took three capsules, twice a day. The most effective doses were 1 gram and 0.5 gram a day, which are equal to half a teaspoon or one-quarter of a teaspoon of ground ginger.All patients also got standard drugs to prevent vomiting, Ryan says.Significantly, ginger caused no side effects.Doctors were careful to monitor patients' platelet levels, because some earlier research suggested that ginger might act like a blood thinner, Ryan says."That's why we're so excited. This is something that people have access to, that won't harm them," says Ryan, who notes that ginger capsules are commonly sold in health food stores.Although ginger has been used as a folk remedy for nausea for centuries, this is the first time that it has been so rigorously tested for chemo patients, says Richard Schilsky, oncology society president, who wasn't involved in the study. He describes the trial's results as "conclusive."Several studies have shown that ginger can relieve morning sickness during pregnancy, says Linda Lee, director of the Johns Hopkins Integrative Medicine & Digestive Center. Doctors don't yet understand exactly why it works.Lee notes that the Food and Drug Administration doesn't regulate supplements such as ginger the same way as it regulates drugs."One of the challenges about recommending a ginger supplement is that not all brands are created equal," Lee says. "One study looked at several ginger supplements on the market, only to find a few of them did not contain gingerol, one of the active compounds in ginger."And Schilsky notes that, because researchers didn't test powdered or fresh ginger, they don't know if these types of ginger are as effective as capsules."How do you translate ginger in a capsule to the ginger in your spice rack?" Schilsky asks. "Can you drink a six pack of ginger ale?"Douglas Blayney, incoming president of the oncology society, says cancer patients should resist the temptation to indulge in too much ginger soda or cookies, however. Some studies show that cancer patients who gain weight are more likely to relapse.Studies show up to two-thirds of cancer patients try herbal remedies or other alternative therapies.Cancer researchers are increasingly interested in testing these approaches.In 2007, researchers at the cancer society meeting showed that ginseng could help relieve cancer patients' fatigue.After eight weeks of treatment in that study, roughly 27% of those who took the two highest ginseng doses rated their fatigue as "moderately" or "very much" better, she says. Only 10% of those who took placebos or the lowest ginseng dose improved that much.And while alternative therapies can relieve some treatment-related symptoms, researchers haven't shown the these folk remedies actually treat cancer. At the 2007 meeting, researchers found that shark cartilage had no effect on lung cancer.
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