Effectiveness of green tea (Camellia sinensis) based mouth rinse on oral health status, pain and quality of life among advanced head and neck cancer patients in a tertiary care centre-a randomized controlled trial

Support Care Cancer. 2026 Apr 1;34(4):397. doi: 10.1007/s00520-026-10573-6.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Head and neck cancers (HNC) significantly impact patients' quality of life (QOL), with oral health often being significantly compromised, especially in advanced stages. Green tea, with its known anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, may help to improve oral health in these patients. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of green tea-based mouth rinse on oral health status, pain, and QOL of advanced HNC patients.

METHODS: This randomized controlled trial was conducted in the palliative care outpatient department of a tertiary hospital in New Delhi. Then, 64 patients with stage III/IV HNC receiving palliative care were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups. In addition to usual care, the experimental group used a green tea-based mouth rinse thrice daily for 6 weeks. The study examined oral health status as the primary outcome, which was assessed at baseline and every 2 weeks up to 6 weeks using the Oral Assessment Guide (OAG) and Oral Hygiene Index-Simplified (OHI-S). The secondary outcomes pain and quality of life of the patients were assessed using the Numerical Pain Rating Scale and Oral Health Impact Profile-14 (OHIP-14), respectively.

RESULTS: Repeated measure ANOVA revealed that experimental group had significantly improved OAG-score (F = 34.32, P = < 0.001, ŋ_p² = 0.39) and OHI-S-score (F = 5.67, P = < 0.001, ŋ_p² = 0.11) over time. However, any significant between-group difference is not found in terms of pain (P = 0.73) and QOL (P = 0.34).

CONCLUSION: Green tea-based mouth rinse was found to be effective in improving the oral health status of advanced HNC patients. Nurses should incorporate such cost-effective options to improve the oral health of cancer patients.

TRIAL REGISTRATION DETAILS: The trial had been registered under the Clinical Trial Registry of India on 17/05/2024. (Registration No: CTRI/2024/05/067571).

PMID:41920369 | DOI:10.1007/s00520-026-10573-6