Effects of inhaled ginger aromatherapy on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting and health-related quality of life in women with breast cancer

Summary Objective To assess the efficacy of inhaled ginger aromatherapy on nausea, vomiting and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in chemotherapy breast cancer patients. Design Single-blind, controlled, randomized cross-over study. Patients received 5-day aromatherapy treatment using either ginger essential oil or fragrance-matched artificial placebo (ginger fragrance oil) which was instilled in a necklace in an order dictated by the treatment group sequence. Setting Two oncology clinics in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Main outcome measures VAS nausea score, frequency of vomiting and HRQoL profile (EORTC QLQ-C30 scores). Results Sixty female patients completed the study (age=47.3±9.26 years; Malay=98.3%; on highly emetogenic chemotherapy=86.7%). The VAS nausea score was significantly lower after ginger essential oil inhalation compared to placebo during acute phase ( P =0.040) but not sustained for overall treatment effect (treatment effect: F =1.82, P =0.183; time effect: F =43.98, P F =2.04; P =0.102). Similarly, there was no significant effect of aromatherapy on vomiting [ F (1, 58)=0.29, P =0.594]. However, a statistically significant change from baseline for global health status ( P role functioning ( P =0.002) and appetite loss ( P Conclusion At present time, the evidence derived from this study is not sufficiently convincing that inhaled ginger aromatherapy is an effective complementary therapy for CINV. The findings for HRQoL were however encouraging with significant improvement in several domains.