Oral mucositis in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation with prophylactic photobiomodulation: A retrospective cohort study.

PURPOSE: To analyze the incidence, severity, and factors associated with the development of oral mucositis (OM) in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) who are receiving prophylactic photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT). METHODS: Data, including sex, age, grade of OM, and conditioning regimen, were collected from medical records of patients undergoing prophylactic PBMT at a reference hospital in Brazil. Pearson's chi-square test or Fisher's exact test were applied to examine the associations between variables. Kaplan-Meier method was used to calculate disease-free survival time. RESULTS: A total of 68 patients were included in the study, 54.4% of whom were female, with a median age of 40 years. OM occurred in 37 patients (54.4%). Most OMs were classified as Grade 0 (45.5%). No cases of Grade 3 or 4 OM were observed. A statistically significant association was found between Grade 1 and 2 OM and younger age (p = 0.017). FluBuMel/Cy conditioning regimen was associated with the occurrence of Grade 2 OM (p = 0.006), while pharyngeal mucositis was associated with Grade 1 (p < 0.0001). Age, pharyngeal mucositis and some types of conditioning regimen had a significant impact on the disease-free survival rate for OM. Patients undergoing the MEL100 conditioning protocol had a 14.36-fold increased risk of developing this complication. CONCLUSION: In HSCT patients undergoing prophylactic use of PBMT, factors such as age, specific chemotherapy conditioning protocols, and the presence of pharyngeal mucositis were found to be associated with OM development.