Effectiveness of Vitamin D Supplementation on Therapy Response of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma Patients with Chemotherapy

Background: The current standard therapy approach for NPC is radiotherapy alone or with concurrent chemotherapy. In patients receiving chemotherapy, vitamin D is inversely correlated with the percentage of pathological complete response. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of vitamin D supplementation on therapy response in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with chemotherapy. Methods: A quasi-experimental study was undertaken at Dr. Mohammad Hoesin Hospital, Palembang from April to October 2024. A total of 26 samples of patients newly diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma and receiving chemotherapy who met the study criteria were obtained. The dose of vitamin D intervention was 2000 IU and the therapy response was evaluated after 3 series of chemotherapy. Results: The highest therapy response was complete response (50%), followed by partial response (23.1%) and progressive response and stable response each 7.7%. The therapy response of both interventions did not show significant results (p = 0.207) but complete response was more common in the chemotherapy add on vitamin D group (75%) compared to the chemotherapy group (36.4%) and progressive disease was only found in the chemotherapy group (18.2%). Conclusion: Add on supplementation of 2000 IU vitamin D in chemotherapy for 3 series has not shown significant results on therapy response in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with chemotherapy