Treatment Of Radiation Mucositis-An Inevitable Entity

Oral mucositis is a frequent adverse reaction of radiation therapy of head and neck malignancies. The incidence and severity of these sequelae of radiation have increased with the use of altered fractionated schedules and concurrent chemotherapy. Mucositis may confine the patient's tolerance of antineoplastic therapy, and the nutritional status is endangered. Thus, the cancer treatment may be dramatically affected along with the patient's quality of life. In order to prevent and treat this condition many treatment options are available, but the complete, effective prevention and therapy cannot be achieved. Research leading to a better understanding of the mechanisms of mucosal injury will ideally result in more specific, more targeted, and effective strategies for prevention of mucositis rather than current management algorithms that rely primarily on costly symptom management.