Potent corticosteroid cream (mometasone furoate) significantly reduces acute radiation dermatitis: results from a double-blind, randomized study

Purpose: Radiation-induced dermatitis is a very common side effect of radia tion therapy. and may necessitate interruption of the therapy. There is a s ubstantial lack of evidence-based treatments for this condition. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of mometasone furoate cream (MMF) on radiation dermatitis in a prospective, double-blind, randomized study. Material and methods: The study comprised 49 patients with node-negative br east cancer. They were operated on with sector resection and scheduled for postoperative radiotherapy using photons with identical radiation qualities and dosage to the breast parenchyma. The patients were randomized to recei ve either MMF or emollient cream. The cream was applied on the irradiated s kin twice a week from the start of radiotherapy until the 12th fraction (24 Gy) and thereafter once daily until 3 weeks after completion of radiation. Both groups additionally received non-blinded emollient cream daily. The i ntensity of the acute radiation dermatitis was evaluated on a weekly basis regarding erythema and pigmentation, using a reflectance spectrophotometer together with visual scoring of the skin reactions. Results: MMF in combination with emollient cream treatment significantly de creased acute radiation dermatitis (P = 0.0033) compared with emollient cre am alone. There was no significant difference in pigmentation between the t wo groups. Conclusions: Adding MMF, a potent topical corticosteroid, to an emollient c ream is statistically significantly more effective than emollient cream alo ne in reducing acute radiation dermatitis. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Irelan d Ltd. All rights reserved.