Effects of non-pharmacological interventions on chemotherapy-induced taste alterations among cancer patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy-induced taste alterations are prevalent and clinically significant symptoms among cancer patients. Although several non-pharmacological interventions have shown potential for alleviating these symptoms, the available evidence has not been comprehensively synthesized. AIMS: To evaluate the effects of non-pharmacological interventions for chemotherapy-induced taste alterations among cancer patients. DESIGN: A systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: A systematic search was conducted in five English and three Chinese electronic databases. Randomized controlled trials (RCT) that examine the effects of non-pharmacological interventions on chemotherapy-induced taste alterations among cancer patients were included. Version 2 of the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomized trials was used to assess the risk of bias in included studies. Pairwise meta-analyses were performed to estimate standardized mean differences (SMD) or risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: The systematic review included 13 RCTs involving 1049 participants, and 12 of these trials were included in the meta-analysis. Five types of intervention were identified, including oral cryotherapy, photobiomodulation therapy, traditional Chinese medicine-based intervention, dietary and nutritional intervention, and psycho-educational intervention. Non-pharmacological interventions significantly reduced the incidence of taste disorders (RR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.61 to 0.86), improved perceived taste alterations (SMD: -1.21; 95% CI: -1.78 to -0.63), and enhanced objective taste function, though significant only for salty taste (SMD: 0.84; 95% CI: 0.56 to 1.12). Subgroup analysis showed that dietary and nutritional interventions conferred significant reduction in taste disorder incidence (RR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.32 to 0.91), oral cryotherapy (SMD: -1.62; 95% CI: -3.16 to -0.07) produced a greater effect on perceived taste alterations than traditional Chinese medicine-based interventions (SMD: -0.73; 95% CI: -1.13 to -0.33), and photobiomodulation therapy significantly improved salty (SMD: 0.90; 95% CI: 0.60 to 1.20), sour (SMD: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.09 to 1.29), and sweet (SMD: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.14 to 1.18) taste function. CONCLUSIONS: Non-pharmacological interventions show promise for the management of chemotherapy-induced taste alterations in patients with cancer. Further high-quality randomized controlled trials with standardized outcome assessments and diverse populations are needed to strengthen the evidence base and inform future clinical management strategies. REGISTRATION: PROSPERO (ID: CRD420261348257).