From left to right:
Prof. Dr. Ljubomir Petricevic of Austria, Medical University of Vienna,
Julian Marschalek, Medical University of Vienna,
Prof. Dr. Gilbert Donders of Belgium, President of ISIDOG

Congratulations to Julian Marschalek, for his important contribution to vulvo-vaginitis research!

Julian was awarded a travel scholarship from NeuEve for his journal article published in Breast Care.

NeuEve is very proud and we feel blessed to be able to support young scientists, especially in the extremely important field of woman's health!

He wrote the article: Influence of Orally Administered Probiotic Lactobacillus Strains on Vaginal Microbiota in Women with Breast Cancer during Chemotherapy: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Double-Blinded Pilot Study

Here's the abstract:

Background: Due to chemotherapy and estrogen deprivation therapy, genitourinary syndrome of menopause is a common condition in breast cancer patients. We aimed to determine the effect of an orally administered Lactobacillus preparation on the vaginal microbiota in breast cancer patients.

Methods: Postmenopausal breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy, with vaginal atrophy and an intermediate vaginal microbiota (Nugent score 4-6), were either randomized to the intervention group receiving probiotic capsules of 4 Lactobacillus species or to the control group receiving placebo twice daily for 2 weeks. Consecutive vaginal swabs were taken at baseline, 1 day after administration of the last capsule (follow-up 1), and after 1 week (follow-up 2) in 22 patients (11 vs. 11).

Results: We observed a positive influence on the vaginal microbiota in 7/11 (63%) women in the intervention group, and 4/11 (36%) women in the control group. There was a shift in Nugent score towards normal microbiota levels in the intervention group (-1.3 at follow-up 1, -0.45 at follow-up 2) and a significant deterioration of the Nugent score in the control group (+0.4 at follow-up 1, +2.5 at follow-up 2).

Conclusion: The orally administered Lactobacillus preparation has the potential to improve the vaginal microbiota in women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer.

© 2017 S. Karger GmbH, Freiburg