title: Carnitine is associated with fatigue following chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer.
abstract: CONCLUSIONS
  Longitudinal assessments of carnitine and fatigue in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma suggest that cisplatin damages the carnitine system in patients undergoing chemoradiotherapy and that carnitine deficiency increases fatigue.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to monitor carnitine levels and fatigue in patients who received cisplatin-based CRT and, for comparison, in patients treated by surgery alone.
  
  
  METHODS
  To investigate the level of carnitine, mice were administered cisplatin. Next, a prospective analysis was performed to compare plasma carnitine levels before and after cisplatin-based chemoradiotherapy and to assess the relationship between carnitine levels and fatigue.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The plasma levels of total carnitine (TC), free carnitine (FC), and fatty acylcarnitine (AC) were significantly lower in mice receiving cisplatin compared with control mice. Mean total carnitine and free carnitine levels were significantly lower 2 weeks after chemoradiotherapy (total carnitine: Mean = 45.6, SD = 16.5, p = 0.01; free carnitine: Mean = 37.8, SD = 12.7, p = 0.02) than before chemoradiotherapy (total carnitine: Mean = 57.7, SD = 12.2; free carnitine: Mean = 48.1, SD = 11.6). There was a significant inverse correlation between carnitine levels and fatigue after chemoradiotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Division of Otolaryngology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kanazawa University , Kanazawa , Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuhira
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tsuji
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kondo
authors.forename: Naohiro
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wakisaka
authors.forename: Shigeyuki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Murono
authors.forename: Tomokazu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yoshizaki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D009202:Cardiomyopathies / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D002331:Carnitine / Q000097:blood* / Q000172:deficiency*; D059248:Chemoradiotherapy / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D022124:Hyperammonemia / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D018763:Muscle Fatigue; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies
chemical_list: D002331:Carnitine
keywords: Carnitine; cisplatin; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma