AUTHOR=Duan Baojun , Zhang Yan , Wang Xi , Zhang Yulian , Hou Yinyin , Bai Jun , Liu Linhua , Chen Yaohua , Zhang Rong , Jin Ronghui , He Li , Pu Yansong 

TITLE=Effect of Megestrol Acetate Combined With Oral Nutrition Supplement in Malnourished Lung Cancer Patients: A Single-Center Prospective Cohort Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.654194

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2021.654194

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> The optimal treatment of cancer-related malnutrition remains unknown. A single-center prospective cohort study was performed to compare the efficacy of megestrol acetate (MA) combined with oral nutrition supplement (ONS) and MA alone for the treatment of lung cancer-related malnutrition.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> 76 eligible patients were prospectively enrolled in two arms, Arm 1 patients (<italic>n</italic> = 40, 52.6%) received MA 160 mg/d, and Arm 2 patients (<italic>n</italic> = 36, 47.4%) received MA 160 mg/d combined with ONS 55.8 g/t.i.d, all orally. All patients received anticancer therapy. Treatment duration was 3 months. The primary endpoints were improvements in body mass index (BMI) and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) score. Secondary endpoints were assessed by appetite, mid-upper arm circumference (MAC), serum pre-albumin levels, and serum albumin levels.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Baseline levels were comparable between Arm 1 and Arm 2 patients. Compared with Arm 1, primary endpoints (BMI, <italic>P</italic> = 0.018; ECOG, <italic>P</italic> = 0.022) and secondary endpoints (MAC, <italic>P</italic> = 0.025; serum pre-albumin, <italic>P</italic> = 0.043; and serum albumin, <italic>P</italic> = 0.034) were improved significantly after treatment in Arm 2. While toxicity was negligible and comparable between Arm 1 and Arm 2.</p><p><bold>Conclusion:</bold> MA combined with ONS may be an effective and safe treatment option for lung cancer-related malnutrition patients.</p><p><bold>Clinical Trial Registration:</bold><ext-link ext-link-type="uri" xlink:href="http://www.clinicaltrials.gov" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">www.clinicaltrials.gov</ext-link>, identifier ChiCTR2100049007.</p>