Vitamin E in Preventing Peripheral Neuropathy Caused by Chemotherapy in Patients Receiving Chemotherapy for Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

• Scheduled to undergo curative-intent adjuvant neurotoxic chemotherapy for cancer

  • Regimen must include ≥ 1 of the following neurotoxic chemotherapeutic agents:

    • Taxanes (e.g., paclitaxel or docetaxel)
    • Platinum compounds (e.g., cisplatin, carboplatin, or oxaliplatin*) NOTE: *Patients receiving oxaliplatin should preferentially be enrolled in protocol NCCTG-N04C7
• No preexisting or history of peripheral neuropathy due to any cause (e.g., diabetes, alcohol, toxin, or hereditary)
• Must have resected tumor with or without microscopic residual disease or residual margin involvement
• No head and neck cancers

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

• ECOG performance status 0-2
• Life expectancy ≥ 6 months
• Able to complete questionnaire(s) alone or with assistance
• Not pregnant or nursing
• Fertile patients must use effective contraception

• No history of coronary artery disease, including, any of the following:

  • Myocardial infarction within the past 5 years
  • Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty within the past 5 years
  • Coronary artery bypass graft within the past 5 years
  • New York Heart Association class I-IV congestive heart failure
• No other medical conditions that would contraindicate study therapy
• No history of hemorrhagic stroke
• No diabetes requiring insulin or oral hypoglycemic medications

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

• See Disease Characteristics
• Prior valve replacement surgery allowed provided patient has fully recovered from the surgery

• No prior neurotoxic chemotherapy unless the following criteria are met:

  • Patient has started neurotoxic chemotherapy within 4 days of starting vitamin E on this study
  • Patient has not been previously treated with other neurotoxic chemotherapy agents
• No vitamin E supplementation within 7 days prior to randomization (except for 1 multivitamin per day that contains ≤ 100 mg of vitamin E)
• No concurrent neoadjuvant therapy
• No concurrent chemotherapy for palliative care

• No concurrent regular opioid-containing medications

  • Opioids for short-term treatment of chemotherapy-induced myalgias or arthralgias caused by taxanes allowed
• No concurrent anticonvulsants, tricyclic antidepressants, or other neuropathic pain medications (e.g., carbamazepine, phenytoin, valproic acid, gabapentin, lamotrigine, topical lidocaine patch, or capsaicin cream)

• No concurrent anticoagulant medication (e.g., warfarin, low molecular weight heparin, or platelet-aggregation inhibitors, such as clopidgrel or acetylsalicylic acid)

  • 1 mg/day of warfarin for central line maintenance is allowed
• No planned concurrent radiotherapy
• No other concurrent therapy for chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy