| Summary: | People with cancer who are well nourished and who are capable of maintaining a healthy body weight may have better outcomes than patients who are undernourished or underweight. Survival is generally shorter for those patients who lose weight prior to starting cancer treatment. Maintaining a healthy diet through cancer treatment may help maintain the immune system and the general well-being of patients. Weight and nutrition can be managed by eating more protein, eating more calories, drinking more water, and reducing alcohol consumption. Calories and protein may come from foods that would regularly be consumed in the diet or through high-calorie and high-protein shakes or beverages. When ingesting adequate nutrition by mouth is not a possibility due to nausea, swallowing difficulty, or a very sore mouth or throat, alternative feeding methods could be necessary. These methods may include providing fluids and nutrition through a feeding tube (enteral nutrition) or intravenous line (parenteral nutrition). The purpose of this review is to evaluate the evidence and guidelines regarding the effect of nutritional supplementation on the clinical outcomes of patients with cancer
|
|---|