Psychotropic drugs for the management of cancer-related fatigue: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a common symptom affecting 60-90% of cancer survivors, and effective management for CRF is not yet available. Recently, an increasing number of trials examining the use of psychotropic drugs for the treatment of CRF have been performed, but these trials have yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis aimed at assessing the effect and safety of psychotropic drugs for the management of CRF. Ten eligible trials of the psychotropic drugs methylphenidate and modafinil in a total of 1582 participants treated for CRF were subjected to statistical analyses. A meta-analysis of seven of these studies indicated that methylphenidate was superior to placebo for the treatment of CRF. Another meta-analysis of three studies evaluating modafinil found that this drug was no better than placebo. Adverse events were similar between both methylphenidate and modafinil and the placebo groups. Our meta-analysis indicated that the treatment of CRF with methylphenidate appears to be effective, whereas modafinil provides no benefit. These results of this analysis warrant further trials to confirm the efficacy and safety of psychotropic drugs for the treatment of CRF.
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.|Community Health Service Center, Hangzhou, China.
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Qu
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.|Department of Gynecology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
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Zhang
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.|Department of Oncology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
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Yu
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.|Department of Oncology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
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Zhao
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.|Department of Oncology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
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Qiu
Cancer Institute (Key Laboratory of Cancer Prevention & Intervention National Ministry of Education Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Medical Sciences), The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China. drhuangjian@zju.edu.cn.|Department of Oncology, Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China. drhuangjian@zju.edu.cn.
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Huang
D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005221:Fatigue / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D008774:Methylphenidate / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000077408:Modafinil; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000627:therapeutic use*
D001559:Benzhydryl Compounds; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs; D008774:Methylphenidate; D000077408:Modafinil
cancer-related fatigue; methylphenidate; modafinil; psychotropic drugs