Preemptive treatment with Xonrid®, a medical device to reduce radiation induced dermatitis in head and neck cancer patients receiving curative treatment: a pilot study

Purpose The purpose of this study was to investigate efficacy, safety and tolerability of Xonrid®, a new medical device, in preventing radiation dermatitis associated with head and neck cancer (HNC) radiotherapy (RT). Methods In this monocentric, prospective pilot study, adult consecutive HNC patients who were planned to receive curative RT with or without chemotherapy were enrolled. Patients were instructed to apply Xonrid® on the irradiated area during treatment continuing until 2 weeks after the completion of RT or the development of severe skin toxicity. Toxicity was assessed using the Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) version 4.0 scale. The patient reported outcome measures included the Skindex-16 questionnaire and patient satisfaction. Skin reflectance spectra were analyzed to objectively evaluate dermatitis. Results In total, 41 subjects were enrolled (30 males, median age 60 years). No skin adverse events were recorded either in the skin area where the product was applied or in the nearby skin over the entire period of administration. At the end of RT, nine patients (22%) presented G1, 31 (76%) G2, and one patient (2%) G3 skin toxicity (after 5 weeks). Seven and 20 patients reached skin maximum toxicity at the fourth week and after the seventh week, respectively. An increasing trend of median spectrophotometry scores along with skin toxicity grades was observed. A correlation between Skindex-16 scores and skin toxicity grade during treatment was found. Conclusions Our study results suggest that Xonrid® is well tolerated, safe, and effective in minimizing and delaying high-grade radiation dermatitis in HNC patients.