Impact of a Melatonin Supplementation on the Quality of Life in Elderly Metastatic Cancer Patients

Summary

Melatonin may represent an effective complementary treatment to standard anticancer treatments in order to reduce asthenia, depression, sleep disturbances, cognitive impairment and performance status as part of quality of life. Moreover, melatonin has been evaluated in several clinical trials in cancer patients with no side effects. It could be particularly of interest in elderly cancer patients as they exhibit a significant deficiency of melatonin production . The investigators propose to perform a prospective and randomized study to study the effect of a melatonin supplementation on the quality of life of elderly advanced/metastatic cancer patients (age ≥ 70) treated for a locally advanced or metastatic cancer.

Timeline

Start

2015-07

Primary completion

2021-05

Completion

2022-02

Publications

• Ginzac A, Bourbouloux E, Rivoirard R, Jouannaud C, Hager MO, Dubois S, Kwiatkowski F, Molnar I, Thivat E, Durando X. Melatonin supplementation for quality of life in older patients with advanced cancer: a randomized controlled trial. BMC Geriatr. 2025 Dec 20;26(1):105. doi: 10.1186/s12877-025-06899-1.

Drugs

Indications