A recent phase II study published in Frontiers in Oncology investigated the impact of exclusive liquid meal replacement using Soylent on patient-reported quality of life (QOL) and adherence in head and neck cancer patients undergoing chemoradiation (CRT). The study, conducted at a single institution, aimed to address the critical need for malnutrition prevention during CRT to maximize patient QOL.
The prospective trial enrolled patients with locally advanced head and neck cancer undergoing definitive or adjuvant concurrent CRT. Patients who experienced a 5% body weight loss during CRT were transitioned to exclusive Soylent meal replacement. Those with a 10% weight loss were recommended for gastrostomy tube (G-tube) placement. The primary outcome was patient-reported QOL, assessed using the UW-QOL and FACT-H&N questionnaires before and after CRT.
Key Findings
Of the 60 enrolled patients, 85% (51/60) experienced a 5% body weight loss and were transitioned to Soylent. An impressive 94% (48/51) successfully adhered to the Soylent meal replacement. Only 22 of these 48 patients subsequently lost 10% of their pre-treatment body weight, with just 3 of those 22 (14%) undergoing G-tube placement. This resulted in a low overall G-tube placement rate of 5%.
QOL data was evaluable for 41 patients. The nadirs for overall and health-related UW-QOL were observed at 1 month post-CRT, but scores rebounded to exceed baseline by 6 months. FACT-H&N survey scores decreased from 32 at baseline to 20 at 1 month (adjusted p<0.001) and 26 at 3 months (adjusted p<0.001). However, these scores recovered to 29, 30, and 27 at 6, 12, and 18 months, respectively, showing no significant difference compared to baseline (adjusted p>0.38 for all).
Clinical Implications
The study highlights the potential of exclusive meal replacement with Soylent to maintain nutritional status and improve QOL in head and neck cancer patients undergoing CRT. The low G-tube placement rate suggests that Soylent can effectively mitigate malnutrition during treatment. The observed recovery in QOL scores further supports the benefits of this nutritional intervention.
"These results indicate that proactive nutritional support with liquid meal replacements like Soylent can play a crucial role in managing the adverse effects of chemoradiation and improving patient outcomes," noted Dr. John Hegde, corresponding author of the study.
Study Limitations
The authors acknowledge that the study was conducted at a single institution and had a relatively small sample size. Further research with larger, multi-center trials is warranted to validate these findings and explore the long-term impact of Soylent on survival and disease control.
