Reintroduction to nutrition and cancer treatment.

OBJECTIVES

To review what constitutes optimal nutrition for the cancer patient.

DATA SOURCES

Conventional nutrition, botanical and biomedical journals and texts, electronic media, databases, and abstracts.

CONCLUSION

Optimal nutrition is neither a complementary nor alternative treatment, but is the fundamental groundwork for the creation of the most favorable cancer treatment outcomes as presented in numerous study findings and journal articles. The two main topics of this article are (1) general food choices and decisions that can affect treatment outcomes; and (2) a brief look at the specific scientific application of individual nutrients to affect a positive impact on treatment, protection of healthy cells and tissues, side-effect mitigation, and quality of life for cancer patients.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

It is critical for health care providers to both acknowledge and apply the principles of nutrition for cancer patients both in general and as part of a therapeutic regimen. It is important for nursing staff to understand that nutritional elements can promote or detract from cancer treatment and recovery.