EPAとがん悪液質のミニレビュー

がん悪液質に対するEPAの影響をミニレビューした論文を紹介します。

R A Murphy, E Yeung, V C Mazurak and M Mourtzakis: Influence of eicosapentaenoic acid supplementation on lean body mass in cancer cachexia. British Journal of Cancer advance online publication 4 October 2011; doi: 10.1038/bjc.2011.391

下記のHPで全文見ることができます。

http://www.nature.com/bjc/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/bjc2011391a.html#bib15

EPAとがん悪液質に関する論文は少なからず出ています。賛否両論といったところですが、最近の4つの研究でEPAが筋肉量の維持に有効という報告が出ています。それらの研究を中心にレビューしています。

確かに言えそうなことは、EPAをがん悪液質に対して使用する場合は、不応性悪液質の時期になってからではなく、なるべく早期（前悪液質か悪液質）の時期からということです。また今回の論文にはありませんが、運動やリハも含めた包括的治療が重要です。

Abstract
Cancer cachexia is characterised by a progressive loss of muscle, resulting in functional impairment and shorter survival. Eicosapentaenoic acid, an n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid found in fish, has been studied for its role as an anti-cachexia therapy. Initial results of eicosapentaenoic supplementation in advanced cancer were promising with improvements in lean body mass (LBM), appetite and quality of life. However, subsequent larger phase III clinical trials reported minimal benefits of supplementation. Recently, several studies have used different study designs, which may provide insight on the effectiveness of eicosapentaenoic in cancer cachexia and also on potential sources of divergent results in previous trials. This review examines the potential benefit of eicosapentaenoic supplementation on LBM and discusses limitations with current studies to identify methods which may aid in progressing the research of future clinical trials.