• Seenae Eum, Hye-Duck Choi, Min-Jung Chang, Ho-Chun Choi, Young-Jin Ko, Jeong-Soo Ahn, Wan-Gyoon Shin, and Ju-Yeun Lee.
• Department of Clinical Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Seoul National University, South Korea.
• Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2013 Jan 1; 83 (2): 101-11.

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate the neuroprotective effects of vitamin E for preventing chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN).MethodsA comprehensive search from 1973 through July 2011 identified randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that reported the preventive effects of vitamin E on CIPN. The relative risk (RR) of CIPN with vitamin E supplementation, compared with placebo, was assessed with the Bayesian random effect model and expressed as RR with a 95 % credible-interval (CrI). Bayesian outcome probabilities were calculated as the probability (P) of RR < 1.ResultsFive RCTs, involving 319 patients, were identified. Upon pooling these RCTs, vitamin E supplementation (300 - 600 mg/day) had a significant effect on CIPN prevention (RR 0.43; 95 % CrI 0.10 - 1.00, P = 97.5 %). Subgroup analysis by chemotherapeutic agent type was only available for cisplatin and showed that vitamin E supplementation significantly reduced the incidence of CIPN (RR 0.26; 95 % CrI 0.06 - 0.89, P = 98.1 %). Furthermore, there were no adverse effects caused by vitamin E supplementation in any of the RCTs.ConclusionAvailable data included in this meta-analysis show that vitamin E supplementation might significantly prevent CIPN. Currently, however, the data are insufficient to confidently conclude the true value. Large-scale, rigorously designed RCTs are needed to confirm the role of vitamin E supplementation in CIPN prevention.

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