A Systematic Review Of Non-Pharmacological/Complementary Methods Of Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea And Vomiting Prevention In Breast Cancer Patients

Background: Nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy are one of the treatment problems in patients with different types of cancer. Methods: In this systematic review, we systematically searched for different types of non-pharmacological treatments for nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients. Based on Prisma guidelines, in MEDLINE databases, Cochrane, Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, and SID, and with the help of the Google scholar search engine, clinical trials reporting the effect of non-pharmacological interventions on nausea and vomiting in women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer were sought. Collected data were used qualitatively for evidence synthesis and chance of bias was assessed based on the Cochrane scale. Result: Finally, 15 studies were selected. Five studies investigated methods based on herbal medicine. Acupressure in different forms was investigated in 6 reports. Three studies with psychophysical exercises and yoga were included in the present review. A total of 952 participants were analyzed in all the reviewed studies in this review. It seems that there is not enough evidence to use different types of oral or inhaled medicinal forms of herbs like ginger or mint to reduce nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Sumac and black cumin can be used as the subject of future research in this regard. Conclusion: The variety of available methods in acupressure limits the decision for clinical use of these methods. The number of articles about each of the ear acupressure methods, wristbands-aided acupressure, massage, yoga, and psychophysical methods is not enough to check the superiority of each of these methods.