Synopsis

Source of validity: Scientific
Rating (out of 5): 3

Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine phosphate) has been studied as a supportive treatment for certain side effects of chemotherapy, particularly chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) and hand-foot syndrome (palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia) associated with some chemotherapeutic agents. Several small clinical trials and observational studies have suggested that vitamin B6 supplementation may help reduce the severity or incidence of these side effects, although the evidence is not uniformly strong or conclusive.

For chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, which is a common and sometimes dose-limiting toxicity of agents such as platinum compounds and taxanes, some studies have reported modest benefit from vitamin B6 supplementation in reducing symptoms like numbness, tingling, and pain. However, other studies have found no significant effect, and overall, systematic reviews and meta-analyses rate the evidence as low to moderate quality. For hand-foot syndrome, especially that caused by capecitabine, there are a few small trials indicating that pyridoxine can reduce the severity of symptoms, but again, results are inconsistent.

Major guidelines (such as from ASCO or ESMO) do not give a strong recommendation for or against vitamin B6 for these indications, largely due to limited and mixed data. Nevertheless, its use is seen in practice, and it is generally considered safe at recommended doses. Further large, well-designed studies are needed to clarify its role.

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