Nursing
Lecture Describes Dietary Interventions and Physical Activity
for Cancer Patients
Dietary interventions
and physical activity can help patients manage cancer-related
weight changes and nutritional deficiencies during and after
treatment, according to Dr. Jean K. Brown, interim dean and
professor at the University at Buffalo School of Nursing.
Dr. Brown presented the April 17 CCR Grand Rounds lecture,
a special oncology nursing lecture.
Dr. Brown cited
two recent studies linking dietary counseling to improved
nutritional outcomes. She also noted that "nutraceuticals"
- food or food components that provide medical or health benefits
- have been shown to lessen cancer-related nutritional problems
and increase survival. A diet that includes nutraceuticals
such as fatty acids, plant-derived polyphenols, and antioxidants
should be considered for cancer patients, Dr. Brown commented.
"To intervene
around nutritional issues, one needs to use a multimodal approach,"
Dr. Brown said. "You can't just try to improve food intake."
She highlighted a clinical trial which found that nutritional
counseling plus indomethacin and erythropoietin increased
food intake, body fat, maximum exercise capacity, and, ultimately,
survival.
Dr. Brown noted
that physical activity can also improve cancer outcomes. During
and after treatment, exercise has been associated with improved
cardiorespiratory fitness, quality of life, and a decrease
in treatment-related symptoms, such as reduced functional
capacity, fatigue, and depression, she said.
"I believe
nurses are on the front lines for nutritional care,"
Dr. Brown concluded. "We are the people who need to ascertain
what the current nutritional status of a patient is, what
the future nutritional status of a patient is, what the future
nutritional assaults might be, and what we can expect down
the road." |
