Research progress of preventing CINV caused by cis-platinum with traditional Chinese and western medicine

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is the most common adverse reaction,especially in chemotherapy containing cisplatin.The incidence rate nearly reaches 100%.The lasting intolerable reaction of alimentary canal,particularly the delayed nausea and vomiting,made the patients have a fear of chemotherapy,and even bring the treatment to a halt,or even if the treatment continued,the syndrome,caused by uncontrolled vomiting,hypo-alimentation,and inordinate water-electrolyte metabolism,would lead to a lower quality of life,decrease the medication compliance and influence the healing effect.Recently,based on CINV mechanism,modern medicine mainly use neurotransmitter receptor antagonist combined with hormone therapy to prevent CINV,and have already obtained certain result.Along with the comprehensive application of antiemetic like 5-HT receptor antagonist,NK-1 receptor antagonist,etc.,the incidence and severity of CINV was markedly reduced,but the delayed nausea and vomiting was not well-controlled.According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM),the pathogenesis of CINV caused by cisplatin is the syndrome of qi asthenia (deficiency of vital energy) and the weakness in the stomach,i.e.,exogenous pathogenic agents invade stomach,which can result in stomach qi upward reverse and cause the disorder of the stomach qi.So,it is highly recommended to apply the therapy of "strengthening the body resistance to eliminate pathogenic factors" so that to "descend adverse qi and settle stomach" ,and it has determined curative effect clinically.Meanwhile,because of less adverse effect,easy to operate,and determined curative effect,external treatment of Traditional Chinese Medicine is gradually attracting the attention of doctors and patients.More and more patients accept acupuncture,moxibustion,and umbilical compress therapy.This kind of external treatment of TCM has been practiced for more than 2,000 years,and proved working well in regulating the function of the spleen and stomach.Researchers from domestic and abroad carried out massive investigation to study the mechanism of acupuncture and the analogue external treatment of TCM,as well as its clinical efficacy.They recommended the acupuncture and the analogue external treatment of TCM as the complementary and substitutive therapy for prophylaxis and treatment of CINV.In this paper,we review research advances in recent years.