Patients with head and neck cancer treated with platinum-based chemotherapy and radiotherapy may develop severe dysphagia related to mucositis. The esophagus is colonized withCandidaspecies in more than 70% of these patients. The breakdown of the mucosal barrier leads to the failure of protective phys...
and particularly the galactomannans, tend to pass through the upper phases of digestion relatively untouched with enzymes in the microflora of the large intestines responsible for their breakdown [22]. Consequently, concern has been raised about the water–binding capacity of gums, and their potential...