Syam Y, Prihantono P, Majid S, Sjattar EL, Kana M, Usman AN. The effect of apis Dorsata honey as a complementary therapy to interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels and T lymphocytes of post-chemotherapy breast cancer patients.
Breast Dis 2021;
40:S97-S101. [PMID:
34057124 DOI:
10.3233/bd-219014]
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Abstract
BACKGROUND
The overproduction of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in breast cancer cases can aggravate metastases. In comparison, the production of T lymphocytes plays a role in suppressing the development of tumor cells. Honey as a complementary therapy is expected to reduce the overproduction of IL-6 and facilitate the production of T lymphocytes in breast cancer cases.
OBJECTIVE
This study aims to determine the effect of Dorsata honey (DH) as a complementary therapy to IL-6 levels and T lymphocytes of post-chemotherapy in breast cancer.
METHODS
This study was a quasi-experimental approach that employed a pretest-posttest group control design. As many as 30 post-chemotherapy breast cancer patients at the Central Hospital in Eastern Indonesia were randomly selected into a control group of 15 participants. Additionally, an intervention group of 15 participants was given DH orally three times a day at a dose of 15 ml. The blood sample was taken two times, day 0 of the chemotherapy and day 16 (post-chemotherapy). The level of IL-6 was measured by ELISA, while the data were analyzed by Wilcoxon, independent T-test, and Mann-Whitney test.
RESULTS
The results showed that DH did not significantly affect IL-6 levels (p = 0.17). However, there was an increase in T lymphocyte levels with statistically significant differences (p = 0.01) in intervention groups. There was no difference in Il-6 and T lymphocyte levels between the intervention and control groups (p > 0.05).
CONCLUSIONS
Il-6 levels tend to be constant in the intervention group. However, there is a significant increase in the T lymphocyte levels which can indirectly increase the immune system and inhibit tumor cell growth in patients with breast cancer.
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