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Activated charcoal to prevent irinotecan‐induced diarrhea in children
Author(s) -
Sergio GallegosCastorena,
Félix GaytánMorales,
Luis JuárezVillegas
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
pediatric blood and cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.116
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1545-5017
pISSN - 1545-5009
DOI - 10.1002/pbc.21491
Subject(s) - irinotecan , medicine , diarrhea , chemotherapy , exact test , toxicity , gastroenterology , randomization , mann–whitney u test , prospective cohort study , randomized controlled trial , cancer , surgery , colorectal cancer
Background We performed a prospective study to evaluate the efficacy of activated charcoal (AC) to prevent irinotecan‐induced diarrhea (IID). Procedure We designed a prospective trial including all patients receiving irinotecan as part of their chemotherapy treatment. Patients were divided into two groups. The experimental group received AC at a dose of 250 mg three times daily during irinotecan administration. The number and severity of events were graded according to the gastrointestinal toxicity criteria of the NCI Common Toxicity Criteria. We used descriptive statistics, Mann–Whitney U test, and Fisher's exact test to evaluate our results. Results Twenty‐two evaluable patients were included for a total of 66 irinotecan chemotherapy cycles. Ten patients received AC and 12 did not. There were 45 cycles in the experimental group and 21 in the control group. A total of 28 events of diarrhea were registered, 13 in 45 cycles (28.88%) in the experimental group and 15 in 21 cycles (71.42%) in the control group ( P = 0.002). Grade 3 and 4 diarrhea was present in 4.4% of patients receiving AC against 52.3% in the controls ( P = 0.010). Chemotherapy was discontinued in 6.6% in the experimental group and 52.3% in the control group. Conclusions The use of AC decreased the frequency and severity of IID improving compliance with treatment. We consider AC and effective and safe prophylactic treatment to prevent IID. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2008;51:49–52. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.