Chan, R. J., Larsen, E., & Chan, P. (2012). Re-examining the evidence in radiation dermatitis management literature: an overview and a critical appraisal of systematic reviews. International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics, 84, e357–e362.

To review the evidence for interventions to prevent and manage radiodermatitis.

Databases searched were MEDLINE, CIHANL, EMBASE, and Cochrane.  Key journals were manually searched.

The primary aim was to review the efficacy of interventions for preventing and managing radiodermatitis. The article was published in a peer-reviewed publication.

The following were excluded from the review:  unpublished work, abstracts, letters, and conference proceedings.
 

In total, 1,837 references were retrieved. Assessment of multiple systematic reviews (AMSTAR) was used.

• The final number of studies reviewed was 6 reviews and 107 total research studies.
• The sample range across studies was 5 to 39 patients.
• The sample mostly included patients with breast and head and neck cancers.

There is insufficient evidence to support the use of any particular intervention for preventing or managing radiodermatitis. There were several shortfalls identified in these systematic reviews. It was noted that the outcomes of pain, itching, and quality of life should be incorporated into the research in this area.

There was high variability in the quality of the systematic reviews concerning management and prevention of radiodermatitis.

The study was limited to discussing systematic reviews.

The study points to the continuing issue of insufficient evidence regarding effective interventions to prevent or manage radiodermatitis, as well as design and reporting limitations of many of the studies in this area. Further research is needed in this area.