Effect of guarana (Paullinia cupana) on fatigue in breast cancer patients undergoing systemic chemotherapy.

Abstract

9007 Background: In breast cancer (BC) patients undergoing systemic chemotherapy, cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a common problem that can negatively impact quality of life. Guarana Paullinia cupana is a plant native to the Amazon basin that has been used as a stimulant since pre-Columbian times. Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of guarana extract on fatigue, sleep quality, anxiety, depression symptoms, and menopause in a group of BC chemotherapy patients. Methods: Patients with progressive fatigue after their first cycle of chemotherapy were randomized to receive either guarana 50 mg by mouth twice daily (32 patients) or placebo (43 patients) for 21 days. After a 7-day wash-out period, patients were crossed over to the opposite experimental arm. All patients were evaluated on days 1, 21, and 49 using the FACIT F, FACIT-ES, Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Chalder Fatigue Scale, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Results: Guarana significantly improved the FACIT-F, FACIT-ES and BFI global scores compared to placebo on days 21 and 49 (p < 0.01). The Chalder Scale improved significantly on day 21 (p = 0.002) but not on day 49 (p = 0.26). Guarana did not produce any CTCAE grades 3 or 4 toxicities and did not worsen sleep quality or cause anxiety or depression. Conclusions: Guarana is an effective, cheap and nontoxic alternative for the treatment of fatigue in BC patients receiving systemic chemotherapy. Further studies are needed to confirm our results and to evaluate their generalizability to other types of cancer. No significant financial relationships to disclose.