ArticleThe oncologist2016
Effects of Dexamethasone and Placebo on Symptom Clusters in Advanced Cancer Patients: A Preliminary Report.
Article in The oncologist, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.
- Systemic corticosteroids for the management of cancer-related breathlessness (dyspnoea) in adults.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019Pooled it
- A randomised, double blind, placebo-controlled trial of megestrol acetate or dexamethasone in treating symptomatic anorexia in people with advanced cancer.Scientific reports · 2021Trial
- Article
- Palliative patients who may benefit from intranasal delivery of symptomatic drugs: a two-center observational study evaluated the administration of morphine and dexamethasone in Polish hospices.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Observational
- Review
- Appetite Loss in Patients with Advanced Cancer Treated at an Acute Palliative Care Unit.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2024Article
- Association between anxiety, depression, and symptom burden in patients with advanced colorectal cancer: A multicenter cross-sectional study.Cancer medicine · 2024Article
- Use of Dexamethasone for Severe Fatigue in the Advanced Cancer Population: A Brief Report.Palliative medicine reports · 2024Article
- Fatigue-related symptom clusters and functional status of older adults in hospice.Palliative & supportive care · 2023Article
- [Research Progress of Pharmacological Therapy and Nutritional Support for Cachexia in Lung Cancer Patients].Zhongguo fei ai za zhi = Chinese journal of lung cancer · 2022Review
- Practice review: Evidence-based and effective management of fatigue in patients with advanced cancer.Palliative medicine · 2022Review
- Evaluation and Management of Sleep and Circadian Rhythm Disturbance in Cancer.Current treatment options in oncology · 2021Review
- Advances in cancer cachexia: Intersection between affected organs, mediators, and pharmacological interventions.Biochimica et biophysica acta. Reviews on cancer · 2020Review
- Cancer-related fatigue and sleep deficiency in cancer care continuum: concepts, assessment, clusters, and management.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2019Review
- Sleep disturbances in advanced cancer patients admitted to a supportive/palliative care unit.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2017Article
- The relationship between pro-inflammatory cytokines and pain, appetite and fatigue in patients with advanced cancer.PloS one · 2017Article
- Opioid Use in Patients With Cervical Cancer at Two Urban Medical Centers.Advances in radiation oncologyArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveAdvanced cancer patients frequently experience debilitating symptoms that occur in clusters, but few pharmacological studies have targeted symptom clusters. Our objective was to examine the effects of dexamethasone on symptom clusters in patients with advanced cancer.
methodsWe reviewed the data from a previous randomized clinical trial to determine the effects of dexamethasone on cancer symptoms. Symptom clusters were identified according to baseline symptoms by using principal component analysis. Correlations and change in the severity of symptom clusters were analyzed after study treatment.
resultsA total of 114 participants were included in this study. Three clusters were identified: fatigue/anorexia-cachexia/depression (FAD), sleep/anxiety/drowsiness (SAD), and pain/dyspnea (PD). Changes in severity of FAD and PD significantly correlated over time (at baseline, day 8, and day 15). The FAD cluster was associated with significant improvement in severity at day 8 and day 15, whereas no significant change was observed with the SAD cluster or PD cluster after dexamethasone treatment.
conclusionThe results of this preliminary study suggest significant correlation over time and improvement in the FAD cluster at day 8 and day 15 after treatment with dexamethasone. These findings suggest that fatigue, anorexia-cachexia, and depression may share a common pathophysiologic basis. Further studies are needed to investigate this cluster and target anti-inflammatory therapies.
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Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.