This is a feasibility, double blind, placebo-controlled clinical study designed to evaluate the effect of 'Encer' on Cancer treatment Related Fatigue. 'Encer' is a combination of 5 Homeopathic Medical Product (HMP). The five HMPs are registered in the Homeopathic Pharmacopeia of the United States and the current investigational treatment 'Encer' is authorized for over-the-counter sales in the USA by NDC number. The study aims to test the efficacy of 'Encer' in treating Cancer Treatment-Related Fatigue (CTRF) among cancer patients treated with chemotherapy and or radiotherapy using the Physiological measurements using Garmin vivosmart 5 and the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy -Fatigue (FACIT-F). This feasibility study will include patients that will be randomly assigned to either Placebo or Treatment in 1:1 ratio.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
QUADRUPLE
Enrollment
74
Homeopathy is one of the most commonly used complementary therapies along with herbs and vitamins in 7 out of 14 European countries, and an average 31.4% of cancer patients in those countries use Homeopathy. The use of homeopathy in patients with cancer has been associated with an improvement in Quality of life (QOL) and a decrease in fatigue symptoms (Medioni et al., 2023). Homeopathy, also known as homeopathic medicine, is a medical system that was developed in Germany more than 200 years ago. It's based on two unconventional theories: "Like cures like"-the notion that a disease can be cured by a substance that produces similar symptoms in healthy people, and "Law of minimum dose"-the notion that the lower the dose of the medication, the greater its effectiveness. Many homeopathic products are so diluted that no molecules of the original substance remain (Cartwright, 2018).
Placebo tablets identical in appearance, taste, and administration schedule to ENCER, but containing only inactive ingredients and no homeopathic active ingredients. Participants received one tablet orally twice daily for 12 weeks.
Assuta Medical Centers Ramat HaHayal
Tel Aviv, Israel
RECRUITINGAdverse Event (AE) or Serious Adverse Events (SAE)
Adverse Event means any untoward medical occurrence associated with the treatment, whether considered related or not. An Adverse Event (AE) is any untoward medical occurrence in a subject exposed to the treatment, whether it is related to the treatment in question or not. This includes a change in a subject's condition, which has or could have a deleterious effect on the subject's health or well-being. Chemotherapy induced AE are anticipated, and therefore any regular, possible common AE of chemotherapy such as nausea, diarrhea, mucositis, anemia, neutropenia, neuropathy or redness over the irradiated skin will be attributed to the systemic oncologic therapy.
Time frame: Weekly assessment from baseline until the end of the study at 12 weeks
Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Fatigue (FACIT-F)
The FACIT-F assesses chronic illness, with an emphasis on cancer therapy, cancer subtypes and symptoms. The FACIT-F is a unidimensional, 13-item scale that asks respondents to rate statements regarding their fatigue experience and its impact on their daily life. An example of items include: "I feel fatigued", "I feel weak all over", and "I feel listless (washed out)". All items are rated using a 5-point intensity rating scale (0-4). By scoring convention, after appropriate reverse scoring of 11 items, lower scores on the FACIT Fatigue subscale indicate greater levels of fatigue (and according to the scoring template available at www.facit.org.)
Time frame: Weekly assessment from baseline until the end of the study at 12 weeks
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