Guest Post: Healthy Eating Provides Wide Range of Benefits for Cancer Patients

The following is a guest post by Jillian McKee on the importance of nutrition and nutritional status  in regards to prevention and treatment of various cancers.  Ms. McKee has worked as the Complementary Medicine Advocate at the Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance since June of 2009. Jillian spends most her time on outreach efforts and spreading information about the integration of complementary and alternative medicine when used in conjunction with traditional cancer treatment.

Healthy Eating Provides Wide Range of Benefits for Cancer Patients

Cancer treatment was once viewed as something separate from the daily life of the patient. Cancer itself was a chance occurrence, and treatments worked or did not work regardless of the habits and lifestyle of each patient. With rapid rise in cancer incidence over the last two decades, this thinking has changed dramatically. It is now understood that a poor diet can contribute as much to the risk of cancer as a sedentary lifestyle. Researchers have also discovered that eating healthy can have major impacts on the patient's experience of symptoms, efficacy of treatment, and risk of later recurrence after successful treatment.

One set of reviewed findings from the National Center for Biotechnology Information discusses how several common treatment-related symptoms are strongly related to the patient's nutritional profile. Weight loss, anorexia, and fatigue are commonly reported side effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but the underlying mechanism has been largely ignored. Systemic damage caused by these forms of treatment results in a decline of available macro- and micronutrients absent changes in diet, because the body works hard to repair damaged tissue. This is compounded by the treatment effects of nausea and loss of appetite.

Individualized Nutrition Recommendations

The guidelines for a healthy diet are well understood by nutritionists, but they are subject to modifications even for otherwise healthy people. Children need more of certain vitamins and minerals and less of others, and seniors likewise have different needs from those of adults and children. Since nutrition plays a critical role in treatment efficacy, researchers suggest every patient have access to an individualized nutrition profile. This will show areas of deficiency and allow maximum prevention of symptoms.

All patients can benefit from the use of a profile, but some will benefit more than others. Palliative care patients, for instance, may need intravenous feeding, or they may be sharply limited in the amount of food they can tolerate. Their symptoms and serum levels can be monitored to prevent deficiencies and improve quality of life. Those undergoing treatment for mesothelioma and other terminal cancers will have a better experience with a nutrition program designed specifically for them.

Benefits for Surgery

Studies have documented the rise of surgical complications related to MRSA and other infections. Other studies have shown healthy eating to provide a prophylactic more effective than spectrum antibiotics. Besides ensuring the body has all the materials necessary for repairing damaged tissue, which is a tactic for speeding recovery and reducing hospital stays, good nutrition also has the effect of boosting the levels of beneficial bacteria in the intestines. Research on probiotics, which are supplements containing these beneficial bacteria, have shown them to significantly reduce the risk of post-operative infection.

Healthy eating is not unlike exercise in that it benefits every system in the body and has a positive effect on outcomes for all cancer patients. However, nutrition is often seen as more mysterious. Patients with common, highly treatable cancers should strive to get nutrition based on their body type, gender and age, but even they can benefit from a nutritional profile.