Mucositis

Mucositis
Illustration of the human gastrointestinal tract
SpecialtyGastroenterology Edit this on Wikidata
SymptomsRed burn-like sores or ulcers throughout the mouth
Causeschemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment

Mucositis is the painful inflammation and ulceration of the mucous membranes lining the digestive tract, usually as an adverse effect of chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment for cancer.[1] Mucositis can occur anywhere along the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, but oral mucositis refers to the particular inflammation and ulceration that occurs in the mouth. Oral mucositis is a common and often debilitating complication of cancer treatment.[2]

Oral and gastrointestinal (GI) mucositis affects almost all patients undergoing high-dose chemotherapy and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), 80% of patients with cancers of the head and neck receiving radiotherapy, and a wide range of patients receiving chemotherapy. Alimentary tract mucositis increases mortality and morbidity and contributes to rising health care costs.[3]

For most cancer treatment, about 5–15% of patients get mucositis. However, with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), up to 40% get mucositis, and 10–15% get grade 3–4 oral mucositis.[3] Irinotecan is associated with severe GI mucositis in over 20% of patients. Seventy-five to eighty percent of bone marrow transplantation recipients experience mucositis, of which oral mucositis is the most common and most debilitating, especially when melphalan is used. In grade 3 oral mucositis, the patient is unable to eat solid food, and in grade 4, the patient is unable to consume liquids as well.[3]

Radiotherapy to the head and neck or to the pelvis or abdomen is associated with Grade 3 and Grade 4 oral or GI mucositis, respectively, often exceeding 50% of patients. Among patients undergoing head and neck radiotherapy, pain and decreased oral function may persist long after the conclusion of therapy. Fractionated radiation dosage increases the risk of mucositis to > 70% of patients in most trials. Oral mucositis is particularly profound and prolonged among HSCT recipients who receive total-body irradiation.[3]

  1. ^ Ridge JA, Glisson BS, Lango MN, et al. "Head and Neck Tumors" Archived 2009-07-20 at the Wayback Machine in Pazdur R, Wagman LD, Camphausen KA, Hoskins WJ (Eds) Cancer Management: A Multidisciplinary Approach Archived 2013-10-04 at the Wayback Machine. 11 ed. 2008.
  2. ^ Sonis, S. T. (2004). "Oral mucositis in cancer therapy". The Journal of Supportive Oncology. 2 (6 Suppl 3): 3–8. PMID 15605918.
  3. ^ a b c d Rubenstein, Edward B.; Peterson, Douglas E.; Schubert, Mark; Keefe, Dorothy; McGuire, Deborah; Epstein, Joel; Elting, Linda S.; Fox, Philip C.; Cooksley, Catherine; Sonis, Stephen T.; Mucositis Study Section of the Multinational Association for Supportive Care in Cancer.; International Society for Oral Oncology. (2004). "Clinical practice guidelines for the prevention and treatment of cancer therapy-induced oral and gastrointestinal mucositis". Cancer. 100 (9 Suppl): 2026–46. doi:10.1002/cncr.20163. PMID 15108223. S2CID 24313893.