Cancer supportive care supplements have uneven evidence and reported harms
A review of reviews found some promising signals for specific treatment side effects, but most evidence was too uncertain for firm recommendations.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Evidence for nutritional supplements in cancer supportive care varied by supplement, side effect and patient group. A few findings reached moderate certainty, but most evidence was low or very low certainty, and some supplements had reported harms. The review does not support broad claims that supplements reliably relieve treatment side effects or improve cancer outcomes.
Almost all included reviews had low or critically low methodological quality. The authors also called for research on whether supplements affect standard treatment effectiveness, which this abstract does not resolve.
Signals in specific clinical settings
Moderate-certainty evidence concerned amino acids and oral proteolytic enzymes for radiation-related skin inflammation severity. It also concerned N-acetyl cysteine for preventing chemotherapy-related nerve damage specifically in people with gastrointestinal cancers; these findings have distinct clinical settings.
Uncertainty and reported harms
Signals for mouth inflammation and other nerve-damage prevention supplements were less certain. Serious adverse events were reported with high-dose vitamin A, while zinc and vitamin E had dose-related adverse events; most supplements were associated with minor events.
The original publication
The Efficacy and Safety of Nutritional Supplements for Cancer Supportive Care: An Umbrella Review and Hierarchical Evidence Synthesis.
Benna-Doyle S, Grant S, Maunder A et al.
Integr Cancer Ther · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41482855
- Record checked
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