• NCI's 'Nausea and Vomiting PDQ'
• Cancerpage.com's "Managing Side Effects: Nausea & Vomitting'

quote:

May 15, 2009 — Supplementing standard antiemetics with ginger appears to reduce nausea in patients undergoing chemotherapy. In the largest study of the subject to date, researchers report that ginger supplements significantly relieved nausea at all doses used.

The data, which will be presented at the 2009 Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncologists (ASCO), were discussed during a premeeting presscast.

"Despite widespread use of antiemetics, chemotherapy-related nausea continues to be reported in more than 70% of patients receiving chemotherapy," said lead author Julie Ryan, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in the departments of radiation oncology and dermatology at the University of Rochester in New York. "For many years, ginger has been used worldwide to treat gastrointestinal upsets such as nausea."

"We have not identified the exact mechanism of action, but other research shows that it acts as a potent anti-inflammatory agent in the gut," she said.

In their study, patients already taking antiemetics who supplemented with ginger had an approximately 40% decrease in nausea, Dr. Ryan reported. Study participants who received placebo reported almost no change in nausea.

"We conclude that ginger supplementation at a daily dose of 0.5 to 1 g significantly aids in reduction of nausea on the first day of chemotherapy," Dr. Ryan summarized. "Reduced nausea will improve cancer patient quality of life during chemotherapy."

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