Clinical study on Kangliu Pill combined with conventional therapy in the treatment of malignant gliomas / 国际中医中药杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To evaluate the clinical efficacy of the Chinese herbal medicine compound Kangliu Pill combined with conventional Western medicine therapy in the treatment of patients with malignant glioma after surgery.Methods:A total of 100 patients with malignant glioma (grade Ⅲ-Ⅳ), who met the inclusion criteria and underwent surgery from January 2017 to November 2019, were divided into the treatment group of 48 patients and the control group of 52, according to the treatment method. The control group was treated with conventional surgery plus radiotherapy, and the treatment group was treated with Kangliu Pill on the basis of the control group. The patients were followed up for 1 to 2 years, and the survival rate, progression-free survival and median survival were recorded. The Karnofsky functional status score (KPS) and quality of life score (QOL) were used to evaluate the patients' survival and quality of life, and the adverse reactions during the treatment period were observed.Results:After treatment, the 1-year survival rates [97.92% (47/48) vs. 80.77% (42/52); χ2=5.847, P=0.016] and 2-year survival rates [89.47% (33/48) vs. 42.31% (22/52); χ2=7.051, P=0.008] in the treatment group were significantly higher than those in the control group. After treatment, the progression-free survival [(23.94±13.12) months vs. (15.82±8.65) months; t=3.63, P<0.01] in the treatment group was significantly higher than that of the control group. After treatment, the survival analysis using the life table method yielded a median survival of 21.13 months in the treatment group and 12.00 months in the control group, with statistically significant differences in median survival and cumulative survival rates between two groups ( P=0.001). The KPS and QOL scores in the treatment group were higher than those in the control group, but the differences between the groups were not statistically significant ( P>0.05). There was no serious adverse events occurred during the treatment period in both groups. Conclusion:Adjuvant therapy with Kangliu Pill can improve survival rate, prolong progression-free survival, median survival, improve quality of life, and enhance the efficacy of patients with malignant glioma after surgery.