Head & Neck Cancer

The TROG 07.03 RadioHum trial evaluated the impact of humidification on mucositis in patients treated for head and neck cancer. Mucositis is the painful inflammation and ulceration of the mucous membranes lining the digestive tract, usually as an adverse effect of chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment for cancer. 

Although it did not demonstrate a significant difference between the mucositis experienced by the two groups, the results show that humidification can play a role in reducing symptoms during radiation therapy for head and neck cancer. On average, patients who received humidification spent less time in the hospital to manage side effects. The return of eating patterns to close to normal was also significantly higher at three months after radiation therapy in the group using humidifiers. The secondary analyses are currently underway.