Effect of Probiotics Supplementation on the Side Effects of Radiation Therapy Among Colorectal Cancer Patients

To meet the objectives of the study, a control group will be included in parallel with the treatment group in this trail. Forty patients (aged 35-65 years) who recently diagnosed with CRC will be recruited conveniently from the radiation oncology clinic at the King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC), Amman, Jordan. Patients who meet the inclusion criteria and agree to participate and to take the drug will be allocated to the probiotic supplementation group, while patients who agree to participate but not to receive the drug will be allocated to the control group. The duration of the intervention will be 5 weeks, from the day of radiation until the end of treatment. For the participants, the King Hussein Cancer Center (KHCC) hospital setting will be utilized for data collection. The patients will be recruited over 12 months and all patients will be asked to sign a written informed consent before enrollment. The patients that will be assigned to the probiotics group (n=20), to receive 3 times a day probiotic supplement. The duration of the intervention (administration of probiotics) will start 10-14 days before radiotherapy and continue over the 5 weeks duration of treatment under the supervision of the treating physician and end with the end of radiation therapy. The blood sample will be collected at baseline and at the end of radiation therapy and 10-14 days after radiation therapy. The demographic data of each subject will be collected such as; gender, age, body mass index (BMI), tumor location, malignant tumors stage, tumor differentiation, educational level, occupation, family history, smoking, dietary and physical activity. At baseline and end line of the radiation therapy, a Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 (QLQ-C30) will be collected and blood sample tests will be withdrawn and the following biochemical variables will be measured: immunoglobulin G, immunoglobulin M, immunoglobulin A, interleukin-6 (IL-6), C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-1(IL-1), interleukin-10(IL-10), interleukin-12 (IL-12), Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and complete blood count (CBC).