Recent advances in non-pharmacological interventions for symptom burden management in breast cancer patients treated with ovarian function suppression.

OBJECTIVE

Ovarian function suppression (OFS) treatment causes a sudden drop in patients' estrogen to postmenopausal levels, accompanied by associated side effects that are often abrupt and intense. This study aimed to provide an evidence base for clinical practice by systematically searching for the best current evidence on managing symptom burden in OFS-treated breast cancer patients.

METHOD

We systematically searched relevant evidence from the creation date to 21 November 2023 in computerized decision systems, guideline networks, professional society networks, and databases. The literature type included guidelines, expert consensus, systematic review, meta-analysis, recommended practice, best practice, clinical decision-making, and evidence summary. After three researchers independently screened and evaluated the literature, two researchers integrated the evidence and checked it by a third person.

RESULTS

A total of 15 articles were selected, including six guidelines and nine expert consensus articles, and the overall literature quality was high. Thirty-eight pieces of evidence were summarized into eight areas: supportive elements of symptom burden management, health education, regular assessment and monitoring, diet and nutrition, exercise training, lifestyle, prevention and control of comorbidities, and complementary and alternative therapies.

CONCLUSION

This study summarizes the best evidence on non-pharmacological interventions for symptom burden management in OFS-treated breast cancer patients, guiding clinical practice. As non-pharmacological interventions for symptom burden management in OFS-treated breast cancer patients are still in their infancy, the best evidence for OFS-treated breast cancer patients should be selected for clinical application in the future in a site-specific and individualized manner, and the best evidence should be continuously updated.

© 2026. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.