Recently Dr. Shalin Shah, a radiation oncologist at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, asked me to co-write something useful for people living with cancer on what they can eat to help their chances of living healthier. He already released the post on his Facebook blog, and after solving some technical difficulties I am posting it today. Please pass this on if you know somebody who is living with cancer, and forward Dr. Shah's Facebook blog which has useful information.
After radiation and chemo treatments are completed and there is no sign of cancer, the cancer may come back. But not all patients have the same chance of the cancer coming back.
Experts believe that patients who are overweight or obese, have high levels of chronic inflammation inside their bodies, or have elevated levels of the hormone insulin (which regulates blood sugar levels) are at an increased risk of having some forms of cancer return regardless of how advanced the cancers were to begin with.
Eating a healthy diet can definitely help maintain a healthy weight, reduce inflammation, keep insulin levels in check, and promote faster recovery after treatment. A healthy diet may even prevent many forms of cancer from returning and increase how long people live after cancer treatment.
What Should I Eat?
Click 'Read More' below to find out.
After radiation and chemo treatments are completed and there is no sign of cancer, the cancer may come back. But not all patients have the same chance of the cancer coming back.
Experts believe that patients who are overweight or obese, have high levels of chronic inflammation inside their bodies, or have elevated levels of the hormone insulin (which regulates blood sugar levels) are at an increased risk of having some forms of cancer return regardless of how advanced the cancers were to begin with.
Eating a healthy diet can definitely help maintain a healthy weight, reduce inflammation, keep insulin levels in check, and promote faster recovery after treatment. A healthy diet may even prevent many forms of cancer from returning and increase how long people live after cancer treatment.
What Should I Eat?
Click 'Read More' below to find out.
Eating well should not be complicated. Just keep these two points in mind and you will be well ahead of the game.
1. Replace all processed foods with natural and whole foods.
Processed foods didn’t exist until perhaps 200 years ago, and processed foods, being heavily modified, lack vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber which are found in natural and whole foods. Processed foods include white bread, white rice, white sugar and fructose corn syrup, and most foods that come packaged in bags or boxes like cookies, chips and soda..
Practical tips:
Research has shown that people who eat a plant-based diet (in other words, “natural and whole foods”) not only have lower risk of developing cancer, but also a better prognosis after having developed cancer. The Mediterranean Diet is one plant-based diet that appears to have an “anti-cancer” effect.
What does a plant-based diet include? Green vegetables, berries and other fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and spices. You don't necessarily have to be vegan or vegetarian, but plants should be by far the main form of food in each meal.
A plant-based diet is anything but bland or boring. For great recipes, check out http://www.cancerproject.org/recipes/index.php.
References:
Boyd BD. Insulin and Cancer. Integr Cancer Ther 2003; 2(4): 315-329.
Calle EE and Kaaks R. Overweight, Obesity and Cancer: Epidemiological Evidence and Proposed Mechanisms. Nat Rev Cancer. 2004 Aug;4(8):579-91.
Mantovani A et al. Cancer-related inflammation. Nature 2008; 454:436-444.
Nutrition for Cancer Survivors. National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Accessed 20 May 2012.
Pine SR et al. Increased Levels of Circulating Interleukin 6, Interleukin 8, C-Reactive Protein, and Risk of Lung Cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 2011; 103(14): 1112-1122.
Salgado R et al. Circulating interleukin-6 predicts survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Int J Cancer. 2003;103(5):642-6.
Sinicrope FA et al. Obesity is an independent prognostic variable in colon cancer survivors. Clin Cancer Res. 2010;16(6):1884-93.
Sinicrope FA and Dannenberg AJ. Obesity and breast cancer prognosis: weight of the evidence. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(1):4-7.
Trichopoulou A et al. Cancer and Mediterranean Dietary Traditions. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev September 2000 9; 869.
Dr. Shalin Shah is a radiation oncologist who works at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Sugar Land, Texas.
Dr. Niraj “Raj” Patel, a nuclear medicine physician at the Houston VAMC, is the author of “The Healthy Indian Diet.”
1. Replace all processed foods with natural and whole foods.
Processed foods didn’t exist until perhaps 200 years ago, and processed foods, being heavily modified, lack vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber which are found in natural and whole foods. Processed foods include white bread, white rice, white sugar and fructose corn syrup, and most foods that come packaged in bags or boxes like cookies, chips and soda..
Practical tips:
- Eat whole grain breads and pastas instead of white bread, flour, and pasta.
- Eat more brown rice instead of white rice.
- Get your sugar from fruit, which contains vitamins, antioxidants and fiber.
- Cut out soda.
- Don’t add white sugar or artificial sweeteners. For sweetness, try natural sweeteners like Stevia or Agave Nectar.
Research has shown that people who eat a plant-based diet (in other words, “natural and whole foods”) not only have lower risk of developing cancer, but also a better prognosis after having developed cancer. The Mediterranean Diet is one plant-based diet that appears to have an “anti-cancer” effect.
What does a plant-based diet include? Green vegetables, berries and other fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds, and spices. You don't necessarily have to be vegan or vegetarian, but plants should be by far the main form of food in each meal.
A plant-based diet is anything but bland or boring. For great recipes, check out http://www.cancerproject.org/recipes/index.php.
References:
Boyd BD. Insulin and Cancer. Integr Cancer Ther 2003; 2(4): 315-329.
Calle EE and Kaaks R. Overweight, Obesity and Cancer: Epidemiological Evidence and Proposed Mechanisms. Nat Rev Cancer. 2004 Aug;4(8):579-91.
Mantovani A et al. Cancer-related inflammation. Nature 2008; 454:436-444.
Nutrition for Cancer Survivors. National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Accessed 20 May 2012.
Pine SR et al. Increased Levels of Circulating Interleukin 6, Interleukin 8, C-Reactive Protein, and Risk of Lung Cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 2011; 103(14): 1112-1122.
Salgado R et al. Circulating interleukin-6 predicts survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Int J Cancer. 2003;103(5):642-6.
Sinicrope FA et al. Obesity is an independent prognostic variable in colon cancer survivors. Clin Cancer Res. 2010;16(6):1884-93.
Sinicrope FA and Dannenberg AJ. Obesity and breast cancer prognosis: weight of the evidence. J Clin Oncol. 2011;29(1):4-7.
Trichopoulou A et al. Cancer and Mediterranean Dietary Traditions. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev September 2000 9; 869.
Dr. Shalin Shah is a radiation oncologist who works at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Sugar Land, Texas.
Dr. Niraj “Raj” Patel, a nuclear medicine physician at the Houston VAMC, is the author of “The Healthy Indian Diet.”
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