Taxane chemotherapy is widely used to treat breast cancers. Taxane is originally a natural product paclitaxel derived from the bark of Pacific Yew tree. Docetaxel is a semi-synthetic analog of paclitaxel while taxane was originally called taxol. Taxanes prevent the separation of chromosomes during the anaphase of cell division.

Compared with non-taxane combination chemotherapy, taxane chemotherapy as a first line or a second line of treatment is more effective to treat breast cancer especially in case of patients previously treated with anthracyclines. It increases the progression time of cancer i.e. slows down the development of cancer.

Side Effects of Taxane Chemotherapy

Taxanes cause more neurotoxicity and hair loss compared to non-taxane chemotherapy. They also cause febrile neutropenia compared with non-taxane chemotherapy. This neutropenia shows up more in case of concurrent chemotherapy of taxanes and anthracyclines.

The good part is that they do not cause much of nausea and vomiting as compared to the other chemotherapy drugs especially when they are combined with low doses of anthracycline. They also do not cause cardiac toxicity as compared to some other chemotherapeutic drugs. This reduction in cardiotoxicity is seen when they are combined with low doses of anthracycline.

Taxane Chemotherapy to treat Breast and Prostrate Cancer

Paclitaxel, abraxane and docetaxel are some of the drugs from the taxane group. These are used in treating prostrate cancer. These drugs attack the cancer cells by making cytoskeleton of the microtubules rigid. Hence, the cytoskeleton is locked in one place. This way the cell crumbles and dies when it tries to divide.

Taxanes are used as adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy to treat early breast cancer that can be removed surgically. Paclitaxel and docetaxel are used in the adjuvant chemotherapy.

Taxane chemotherapy is also used for patients with a high risk of recurrence.

Taxanes are also used when the disease is spread to the lymph nodes. This enhances the chances of overall and disease free survival for the patients.

Diet during Taxane Chemotherapy

Taxanes cause side effects like loss, bone marrow suppression, nausea, fatigue, muscle and joint pain, etc. To get relief from these side effects and to make the treatment more effective, it is important to eat certain foods containing certain micronutrients that prevent the development of breast cancer and metastasis.

Foods that enhance the effectiveness of Taxol

• Apples

• Blueberries
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Cranberries
• Celery
• Grape juice
• Green tea
• Horseradish
• Mustard
• Olive oil
• Onions
• Parsley
• Turmeric
• Salmon

Sour cherries, olive oil and vitamin D relieve joint and muscle pain occurring due to taxane chemotherapy. Some of the other good to eat foods that do not have any carcinogenic effect on the body are iceberg lettuce, green lettuce, peeled almonds, apple juice, bananas, peeled zucchini, low fat yoghurt, white rice, peeled potatoes, melons, green beans, coconut, cucumbers, honey, etc. These should be consumed in moderation combined with the foods above.

Regular exercise helps to reduce fatigue in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Light aerobic exercise is usually recommended.

Taxane chemotherapy has now become a standard treatment for metastatic breast cancer especially if anthracyclines have failed. When combined with anthracyclines taxanes as a first line treatment for advanced breast cancer are emerging very effective in the clinical trials for adjuvant chemotherapy.