Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 5, 2026
Evaluating Cell Death Using Cell-Free Supernatant of Probiotics in Three-Dimensional Spheroid Cultures of Colorectal Cancer Cells
Published on: June 13, 2020
Probiotic bacteria in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy
Michal Mego1, Vladimir Holec, Lubos Drgona
1Department of Medical Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Comenius University and National Cancer Institute, Klenova 1, 833 10 Bratislava, Slovak Republic.
Background:
Probiotics are live microorganisms, which as drugs or food supplements help to maintain health beneficial microbial balance in the digestive tract of a human or other host. Probiotics by their properties may help strengthen homeostasis and thus reduce side effects associated with cancer treatment. Experimental evidence suggests that probiotics might have beneficial effect on the toxicity of anticancer therapy.
Methods:
A computer-based literature search was carried out using PubMed (keywords: "probiotic" and "lactic acid bacteria" in association with the search terms "cancer" or "oncology" or "chemotherapy" or "radiation"); data reported at international meetings were included.
Results:
Probiotics might have beneficial effects on some aspects of toxicity related to anticancer treatment especially radiation therapy. However, reported trials vary in utilized probiotic strains, dose of probiotics and vast majority of them are small trials with substantial risk of bias. Despite limited data, it seems that probiotic bacteria as live microorganisms could be safely administered even in the setting of neutropenia.
Conclusions:
Current evidence supporting probiotic use as adjunctive therapy to anticancer treatment is limited, especially in cancer patients treated with chemotherapy. Well designed clinical trials are needed to find true role of probiotics in oncology.
Related Concept Videos
01:22Probiotics
01:28Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: Neurokinin-1 Receptor Antagonists
01:27Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: 5-HT3 Receptor Antagonists
01:21Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting: Cannabinoids
Two synthetic agonists of THC,...
02:49Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
01:30Cancer Vaccines
Cancer vaccines come in two categories: preventive (prophylactic) and treatment (active). Preventive vaccines, such as the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, protect against viruses that cause certain...