Tehran University of Medical Sciences Traditional and Integrative Medicine 2476-5104 11 3 2026 10 01 2507 2507 Mona Malekzadeh Moghani 1Radiotherapy Oncology Department, Shohada-e Tajrish Educational Hospital, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Omid Khaleghpanah 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Ghazaleh Heydarirad Department of Traditional Medicine, School of Traditional Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Maryam Kalantari Khandani Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Masoumeh Nouri Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Surgical Oncology Research Center, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran 2025 11 02 2026 04 30 Taxane-based chemotherapy is commonly used in the treatment of various solid tumors. Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) remains a common and debilitating side effect of taxanes, with limited effective treatments. Aromatherapy has been suggested as a non-pharmacological approach to relieve CIPN symptoms. This randomized controlled clinical trial investigated the effects of aromatherapy using lavender and peppermint essential oils (LPEO) on managing CIPN symptoms in women with breast cancer who received taxane-based chemotherapy. This parallel-group randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial was prospectively registered in the Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials (IRCT20230407057835N1). Thirty-four participants with clinically confirmed CIPN were randomly assigned to either the intervention group, which received topical LPEO, or to a control group that received a placebo. The oils were applied twice daily to the feet and hands for a period of four weeks. The modified Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy/Gynecologic Oncology Group-Neurotoxicity (FACT/GOG-NTx) questionnaire evaluated symptom severity, including pain, numbness, and tingling, on a 10-point scale. SPSS 23 software was used for statistical analysis. The intervention group showed significant reductions in pain (from 3.52 ± 2.71 to 2.41 ± 1.73, p = 0.020), numbness (from 6.29 ± 2.17 to 4.41 ± 2.23, p = 0.0003), and tingling (from 5.70 ± 2.88 to 3.76 ± 2.46, p = 0.004) compared to the control group, which did not exhibit significant changes in these symptoms, except for a slight decrease in pain (1.66 ± 0.90 to 1.33 ± 0.84, p = 0.009). No adverse events related to the essential oils were reported. These findings suggest aromatherapy, with topical LPEO, is a safe and effective complementary approach for the alleviation of sensory symptoms of taxane-induced peripheral neuropathy in patients with breast cancer. https://jtim.tums.ac.ir/index.php/jtim/article/view/2507