Prevention of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN): Current clinical data and future directions

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neurotoxicity (CIPN) is a treatment related toxicity that burdens the quality of life of cancer survivors. Unfortunately, no efficacious treatment (symptomatic or preventive) is available for this condition for many reasons. First, a still incomplete pathogenetic knowledge hampers the recognition of a strong biological rationale for clinical trials. Second, there are some methodological issues in clinical trial design that still need to be addressed. In this chapter we will present an overview of strategies that were undertaken in the past and some that are now undergoing clinical investigation for prevention of CIPN. This is a complex challenge that will require multidisciplinary collaborative research between basic scientists, health care professionals, and patient representatives.