The effect of ginger (Zingiber officinale) on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients: A systematic literature review of randomized controlled trials

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The effect of ginger (Zingiber officinale) on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients: A systematic literature review of randomized controlled trials

Saneei et al., 2019 | Phytother Res | Systematic Review

Citation

Saneei Totmaj Ali, Emamat Hadi, ... Zarrati Mitra. The effect of ginger (Zingiber officinale) on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting in breast cancer patients: A systematic literature review of randomized controlled trials. Phytother Res. 2019-Aug;33(8):1957-1965. doi:10.1002/ptr.6377

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer and is the leading cause of mortality due to all types of cancers among the female population worldwide. Results of clinical trials investigating the effect of ginger on chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) in breast cancer patients are inconsistent. This study was aimed at obtaining a comprehensive overview of the current evidence regarding the effectiveness of ginger as an antiemetic modality for controlling CINV in breast cancer patients. All published randomized controlled trials in English were systematically searched on Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane search databases up to June 2018. The outcome variable of interest was severity and the frequency of nausea and vomiting in patients. A total of 50 studies were found through search databases. After excluding duplicates, the 42 remaining studies were screened, and finally, nine trials were included, which were published between 2012 and 2017. Two studies have examined the effect of ginger on the frequency of nausea, five studies on the frequency of vomiting, seven studies on the severity of nausea, and three studies on severity of vomiting. A study evaluated the effectiveness of ginger in improving dietary intake in CINV. Our investigation suggests that ginger may reduce nausea in the acute phase of chemotherapy in patients with breast cancer. The effect of ginger on nausea and vomiting in other conditions requires more high-quality clinical trials.

Key Findings

The effect of ginger on nausea and vomiting in other conditions requires more high-quality clinical trials.

Outcomes Measured

  • Requires manual extraction

Population

Field Value
Population breast cancer
Sample Size 50
Age Range See abstract
Condition See abstract

MeSH Terms

  • Adult
  • Breast Neoplasms
  • Female
  • Zingiber officinale
  • Humans
  • Middle Aged
  • Nausea
  • Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
  • Vomiting

Evidence Classification

  • Level: Systematic Review
  • Publication Types: Journal Article, Systematic Review
  • Vertical: ginger-nausea

Provenance

Source extracted via PubMed E-utilities API on 2026-04-09