SynthesisSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2021
Effectiveness of glutamine in the management of oral mucositis in cancer patients: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 10 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
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- [Breast cancer survivor program: follow-up, rehabilitation, psycho-oncology, palliative care].Magyar onkologia · 2025Guideline
- Methylene blue for intractable pain from oral mucositis related to cancer treatment: a randomized phase 2 clinical trial.BMC medicine · 2022Trial
- Herbal Products and Dietary Supplements in Radiation Oncology: Evidence, Safety, and Practical Patient Counseling.Seminars in radiation oncology · 2026Review
- Immunonutrients for radiation-induced oral mucositis in head and neck cancer: current evidence and future perspectives.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Clinical Risk Factors for High-Dose Methotrexate-Induced Oral Mucositis Following Individualized Dosing.Cancer medicine · 2024Article
- Glutamine Supplementation as an Anticancer Strategy: A Potential Therapeutic Alternative to the Convention.Cancers · 2024Review
- Targeting the Metabolic Paradigms in Cancer and Diabetes.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- The Incidence and Management of Cancer-Related Anorexia During Treatment with Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor-Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors.Cancer management and research · 2023Review
- Use of oral glutamine in radiation-induced adverse effects in patients with thoracic and upper aerodigestive malignancies: Results of a prospective observational study.Oncology letters · 2022Article
- Effects of various treatments for preventing oral mucositis in cancer patients: A network meta-analysis.PloS one · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveThe aim of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the effectiveness of glutamine for preventing or treating moderate-to-severe oral mucositis induced by chemotherapy or radiation therapy in patients with cancer.
methodsPubMed, Cochrane Library, and Embase were searched for eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs) up to June 2020. The outcomes analyzed were oral mucositis (at all levels of severity). Data were pooled using the random-effects model and are expressed as risk ratios (RRs) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Heterogeneity was assessed and quantified using I
resultsSixteen RCTs were included in this review. In this meta-analysis, compared with placebo, glutamine significantly reduced the incidence of grade 3 and 4 oral mucositis induced by chemotherapy or radiation therapy (RR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.32-0.88). In subgroup analysis, oral glutamine administration (RR, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.34-0.92) and a medium or low daily dose of glutamine (RR, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.44-0.77; RR, 0.53; 95% CI, 0.28-0.94; respectively) decreased risk. Glutamine caused a borderline significant reduction in the risk of grade 3 and 4 oral mucositis induced by radiotherapy (RR, 0.75; 95% CI, 0.58-0.99) and especially in its prevention (RR, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.28-0.94).
conclusionsGlutamine significantly reduces the risk of oral mucositis during chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Furthermore, large prospective trials are required to support these findings.
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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.