Abstract We aimed at comparing the mitigating effect of zinc and selenium in patients undergoing radiotherapy for HNSCC. Fifty-one HNC patients undergoing radiotherapy were prospectively enrolled. They were randomly allocated into three groups, of 17 subjects each, to receive either no supplement (control), supplementary zinc, or selenium. All participants were evaluated with electrogustometry (EGM) and contact endoscopy (CE). Statistical significance of differences in EGM thresholds among treatments were observed only at the soft palate and on the right area of the vallate papillae. Interestingly, the statistical analysis showed no significant differences between the zinc and selenium groups concerning both the EGM thresholds and the CE findings at the apex of the tongue. Both zinc and selenium had a protective role on the oral mucosa during radiotherapy; however, in our cohort, selenium seems to be more effective, albeit not in all areas of the oral cavity. Concerning EGM thresholds, a significantly more pronounced effect of selenium supplementation was observed at the base of the tongue and on its sides, rather than at its apex. The administration of selenium is shown to be of particular importance for the oral mucosa and taste function when it is used systematically and consistently.
Pavlidis et al. (Mon,) studied this question.