Lactobacillus acidophilus associated with other probiotics alters the microbiota of colorectal cancer patients: systematic review

Abstract

Objective: Microbiome is an important factor for the development and progression of colorectal cancer. The aim of the study was to carry out a systematic review to verify whether the administration of food or pharmaceutical formulations containing the bacterium Lactobacillus acidophilus, alone or associated with other bacteria and substances could alter the intestinal microbiota in colorectal cancer patients. Methods: The review of randomized trials compared the use of L. acidophilus versus placebo or samples of healthy patients without intervention. Results: Two independent reviewers performed the search and found 1,060 articles, with the preliminary selection of 22 articles that were read in full and 04 articles that were included in the systematic review. The included articles worked with pharmaceutical formulations containing L. acidophilus associated with other probiotic bacteria and prebiotic fibers. The results showed that the administration of formulations in patients with colorectal cancer was for less than 31 days, underwent colonoscopy or surgical resection with qualitative and quantitative changes in the microbiota of the individuals included compared to those who received placebo formulation or were under healthy control. Conclusions: The alterations found demonstrate that probiotics had the ability to modulate the microbiota to a profile close to that found by healthy patients.