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Welcome to Lifestyle and Cancer News Updates -  This issue focuses on the latest research on how to avoid nail damage during chemotherapy
 
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Chemotherapy nail damage 


Chemotherapy often cause ridges in the nails that correspond to the timings of chemotherapy episodes, known as Beau's lines. 

More pronounced nail damage leads to discolouration, soreness, brittle nails, partial destruction.

Particularly if receiving taxanes, unsightly nail loss (onycholysis) can occur causing pain, body image issues, limitations in daily living activities and if untreated, can lead to secondary infection .  
  

More about chemotherapy induced nail damage

Polyphenols to the rescue - again! 

There is increasing awareness of benefits plant polyphenols.  These gifts from nature enhance the look, smell and taste of food and have complex bioactive properties which reduce the risk of cancer,  help  gut bacteria , improve  bone density , arthritis &   diabetes . 

The UK polybalm study explored the topical properties of  rare, polyphenol rich, essential oils that are :
  • Moisturisings
  • Anti-oxidant
  • Anti-bacterial
  • Anti-fungal
  • Analgesic

The polybalm study 

A double blind  trial involving 60 men and women r eceiving chemotherapy. They were randomised to apply a simple moisturising cream or a balm containing natural plant extracts to their nail beds between 1-3 a day.

In all but 2 patients in the polybalm cohort, there was virtually no nail damage compared to more than half in the placebo  group. Formal nail damage and nail related qol was measured with 4 independent tools which revealed a dramatic significant difference between the two groups: 

A. Patient reported:
1. Dermatology Life Quality quest  Placebo(-6.1); Polybalm(-0.03);(p<0.0001)
2. Linear severity Scale Placebo (-64.1); polybalm (2.63) (p<0.0001).
 
B. Physician reported:
3. Nail Psoriasis Index : Placebo (-5.71); Polybalm (0.0); (p<0.0001)
4. Linear severity Scale: Placebo (-66.1); Polybalm (-5.79);  (p=<0.0001).

  

Who's behind  the polybalm study 

NCRI
This trial was designed by a scientific committee of phytochemists, herbalists, patients, oncologists and nurses from Bedford and Addenbrooke's Cambridge University Hospitals as well as Coventry University and the Royal Hospital for Integrative Medicine, Great Ormond St. The committee worked in liaison with the National Cancer Research Institute's lifestyle and behavioral change work stream.  
This was a non-commercial study and audited to comply with good clinical practice guidelines and Cambridge University Central  Research Ethics Committee approval. It was registered with the Health Research Authority. No member of the research team received payments to recruit patients into the study or have any connection with the manufacturers 

The balms are made by a UK manufacturer  which are fully comply with European Union Cosmetics Standards. The initial results were published in  the UK's NCRI conference  in the World's largest and most prestigious Cancer Conference - ASCO:

asco

 Where can you buy polybalm 

We are pleased to announce the manufacturers, have made polybalm commercially available. 

Although this was a scientific evaluation, the FDA and MHRA classed them as a cosmetic, so cannot be prescribed and should  not be used against medical advice.


Link to the polybalm web site

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