Nutritional supplement aids cancer treatment – Australian Study

Up to one in two cancer patients die from malnutrition

Leading cancer experts say dietary management should be considered an important part of treatment following the release of preliminary results of a study of nutrition in bowel cancer patients. The data suggest the high protein nutritional treatment that includes the Omega-3 fatty acid EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) known as ProSure helps patients to maintain their weight and better tolerate chemotherapy.’Unfortunately 40-80 per cent of cancer patients will develop malnutrition and experience unintentional weight loss,’ Professor Stephen Clarke, Principal Investigator and Medical Oncologist, University of Sydney said.’The weight maintenance achieved by the patients in this study is likely to be significant. Weight loss has been shown to impair a patient’s tolerance of therapy and increase hospital stays, thereby detracting on their overall quality of life and length of survival.’Another promising trend was that patients involved in the study were also able to tolerate treatment without the necessity for dose reduction – a frequent requirement for many patients receiving chemotherapy.’Prior to commencing this trial, we knew that large numbers of patients in Australia could potentially benefit from more effective and better tolerated chemotherapy for advanced disease.These preliminary results look extremely promising,’ Professor Clarke said.The loss of as little as five per cent of body weight may have a negative affect on a person’s tolerance of cancer therapy and result in a reduced quality of life. ProSure, a medically active nutritional product designed for people with cancer, has been shown to significantly improve cancer patients’ quality of life, by increasing weight, building strength and reversing or slowing cancer induced weight loss.- 2 -Progressive weight loss is common in cancer patients, however often this issue isn’t addressed early enough in treatment. Weight loss is one of the early signs of cancer and as many as 80 percent of individuals may experience significant weight loss by the time they have their first visit to an oncologist.According to Professor Clarke, weight management is too often neglected by specialists involved in the treatment of cancer. ‘This may be due to the fact that, until this study, the positive effect of nutrition intervention on a patient’s tolerance to chemotherapy was largely unknown.’The results of this study are very encouraging. Australian oncologists should consider nutritional management as part of their overall treatment plan for cancer patients,’ Professor Clarke said.The study, which is being conducted in a number of centres, including Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Concord Hospital, is the first of its kind in the world and sought to determine the effects of ProSure on a patient’s tolerance of cancer treatment.Metabolic abnormalities caused by cancer lead to the burning of more calories than normal, a decrease in appetite and an increase in the breakdown of muscle. Unfortunately, simply eating more or using conventional nutritional support may not reverse weight loss because cancer causes fundamental changes within the body.According to Professor Clarke, up to one in two cancer patients admitted to hospital suffer from a lack of protein8- leading to increases in surgical failure, reduction in immunity, wound healing and cardiac output. ‘This nutritional supplement can help combat these problems by increasing total protein intake among cancer patients.”While weight loss can occur in both the early and late stages of cancer, the sooner nutritional care commences, the easier it may be to manage or even hold off weight loss,’Professor Clarke added.