The Effect of Melatonin Supplementation on Fatigue Symptoms During Chemotherapy Treatment of Breast Cancer Patients

November 4, 2023 updated by: Frantzeska Nimee, Harokopio University
The aim of the present 3-month randomized, placebo-controlled trial was to evaluate whether adherence to Mediterranean Diet (MD) together with melatonin oral treatment or plaebo, would ameliorate Cancer Related Fatigue in Breast Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Cancer related fatigue (CRF) is a common distressing complaint in breast cancer (BC) patients treated with chemotherapy. Nutrition quality plays a pivotal role in CRF, while an increased interest towards new pharmacological agents has been observed.

Melatonin, an endogenous hormone that regulates the human sleep-wake cycle, could alleviate CRF.

In the present randomized, placebo-controlled 3-month trial, we investigated the effects of melatonin intake (i.e., 1 mg/day) vs. placebo on CRF of BC patients. Melatonin and placebo tablets were of similar physical and sensory properties. In both arms, Mediterranean diet (MD) was implemented. Medical history, anthropometry and blood withdrawal were performed. CRF was evaluated by the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Fatigue questionnaire and MD adherence by the MedDiet Score.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
56

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Greece
      • Athens, Greece
        • Iaso Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion criteria:

  1. adult women (≥ 18 years of age) with BC diagnosis who underwent chemotherapy at the time of invitation,
  2. women receiving pharmacological treatment that did not interact with melatonin,
  3. women receiving standard pharmacological treatment for at least last two months prior to study initiation,
  4. patients with good performance status, as indicated by scoring "0 or 1" of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Performance Status (ECOG PS) questionnaire [26],
  5. patients not needing a transfusion, as indicated by hemoglobin ≥ 9 g/dL,

  6. patients having the ability to understand and give a written statement of consent.

    Patients were excluded from the study when:

  7. fatigue was attributed to conditions other than cancer e.g., uncontrolled hypothyroidism, hypercalcemia, congestive heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease,
  8. using pharmacological agents for CRF or sleeping disorders prior to the study,
  9. pharmacological treatment that was modified during the study or that could interact with melatonin,
  10. diagnosed with gastrointestinal diseases that could affect absorption of nutrients such as inflammatory bowel diseases infections.
  11. diagnosed with psychiatric disorders such as depression, psychosis, bipolar disorder, and receiving equivalent medication.
  12. excessive alcohol consumption.
  13. a lifestyle that can affect sleep patterns (e.g., night shifts).
  14. patients with a poor clinical state as indicated by laboratory markers: creatinine clearance < 30 mL/min; aspartate aminotransferase (AST) > 3 x upper limit of normal (ULN); alanine aminotransferase (ALT) > 3 x ULN; bilirubin > 1 x ULN.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: intervention group
Participants in the Intervention group consumed one melatonin tablet per day, containing 1mg of melatonin, for a total of three months.
Dietary supplement: Melatonin
Patients of the Intervention group (melatonin group) received a personalized dietary plan based on the Mediterranean Diet, together with a booklet of lifestyle guidelines (nutritional and physical activity), all generated by a Clinical Decision Support System (CDSS). Moreover, participants in the Intervention group consumed one melatonin tablet per day, containing 1 mg of melatonin, together with water for a total of three months.
No Intervention: placebo group
Participants in this group were instructed to consume one placebo tablet (with water) every day for a total of three months. Melatonin and placebo tablets were of similar physical and sensory properties.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Cancer Related Fatigue
Time Frame: three months
Whether melatonin can ameliorate cancer related fatigue in breast cancer patients. Cancer related fatigue was evaluated by the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Fatigue questionnaire. It is a 40-item scale that assesses self-reported fatigue in terms of daily activities and function. It has five subscale domains: Physical Well-Being, Social/Family Well-Being, Emotional Well-Being, Functional Well-Being, and Fatigue. For each question there are five answers (Not at all, A little bit, Somewhat, Quite a bit, Very much). Scoring ranges between 0 and 160. The higher the score, the better the participant's well-being.
three months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Harokopio University

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Maria Skouroliakou, Dr, Harokopio University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2022

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 31, 2022

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 31, 2022

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
October 10, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 4, 2023

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
November 9, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
November 9, 2023

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 4, 2023

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 01052022
  • D231052019 (Other Identifier: The Ethics Committee of "IASO Hospital")

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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