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Review
. 2022 Feb 1;128(3):461-470.
doi: 10.1002/cncr.33892. Epub 2021 Oct 13.

Metagenomics and chemotherapy-induced nausea: A roadmap for future research

Sylvia L Crowder  1 , Aasha I Hoogland  1 , Taylor L Welniak  1 , Elizabeth A LaFranchise  2 , Kristen M Carpenter  3 , Daneng Li  4 , Daniel M Rotroff  5 , Arshiya Mariam  5 , Christine M Pierce  6 , Stacy M Fischer  7 , Anita Y Kinney  8 , Thi Dong-Binh Tran  9 , Farzaneh Rastegari  9   10 , Donna L Berry  11 , Martine Extermann  12 , Richard D Kim  13 , Danielle B Tometich  1 , Jane C Figueiredo  14 , Jameel Muzaffar  15 , Shahla Bari  16 , Kea Turner  1 , George M Weinstock  9 , Heather S L Jim  1
Affiliations
Review

Metagenomics and chemotherapy-induced nausea: A roadmap for future research

Sylvia L Crowder et al. Cancer. .

Abstract

Uncontrolled chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting can reduce patients' quality of life and may result in premature discontinuation of chemotherapy. Although nausea and vomiting are commonly grouped together, research has shown that antiemetics are clinically effective against chemotherapy-induced vomiting (CIV) but less so against chemotherapy-induced nausea (CIN). Nausea remains a problem for up to 68% of patients who are prescribed guideline-consistent antiemetics. Despite the high prevalence of CIN, relatively little is known regarding its etiology independent of CIV. This review summarizes a metagenomics approach to the study and treatment of CIN with the goal of encouraging future research. Metagenomics focuses on genetic risk factors and encompasses both human (ie, host) and gut microbial genetic variation. Little work to date has focused on metagenomics as a putative biological mechanism of CIN. Metagenomics has the potential to be a powerful tool in advancing scientific understanding of CIN by identifying new biological pathways and intervention targets. The investigation of metagenomics in the context of well-established demographic, clinical, and patient-reported risk factors may help to identify patients at risk and facilitate the prevention and management of CIN.

Keywords: chemotherapy; metabolome; microbiome; nausea; prevention; symptoms.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest Disclosures

Dr. Li reports grants from Brooklyn Immunotherapeutics and AstraZeneca as well as personal fees from Lexicon, Ipsen, Eisai, Exelixis, Advanced Accelerator Applications, Bayer, Genentech, Taiho, Coherus, Sun Pharma, and QED, outside the submitted work. Dr. Jim is a consultant to RedHill BioPharma, Janssen Scientific Affairs, Merck, and has received grant funding from Kite Pharma.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Current understanding of pathophysiology in chemotherapy-induced nausea
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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