Supporting people to manage nutrition throughout their cancer journey
Intended for healthcare professionals
CPD    

Supporting people to manage nutrition throughout their cancer journey

Anne Holdoway Consultant dietitian and chair of the Malnutrition Pathway, Bath Clinic, Circle Health Group, Bath, England
Mhairi Donald Consultant dietitian oncology, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, Brighton, England
Ali Hodge Advanced clinical practitioner, University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, Brighton, England

Why you should read this article:
  • To recognise the nutrition impact symptoms that people with cancer may experience

  • To consider the interventions you could implement in your practice to manage nutrition-related issues and improve quality of life

  • To contribute towards revalidation as part of your 35 hours of CPD (UK readers)

  • To contribute towards your professional development and local registration renewal requirements (non-UK readers)

Cancer and its associated treatments can result in a range of adverse symptoms which can affect a person’s ability to consume, digest and absorb food and fluids. These are collectively referred to as nutrition impact symptoms, and they can occur singularly or in combination at any stage of the cancer journey. If left unmanaged, nutrition impact symptoms can result in diminished nutritional intake, leading to malnutrition, cachexia and sarcopenia, which can result in suboptimal cancer treatment outcomes and reduced quality of life. Therefore, early recognition and management or alleviation of nutrition impact symptoms is crucial. This article explores nutrition impact symptoms and the dietary modifications that can be used to manage or alleviate these symptoms. It also discusses the role of the nurse in nutrition screening and assessment and in providing nutritional support interventions.

Cancer Nursing Practice. doi: 10.7748/cnp.2023.e1830

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

@MNpathway

Correspondence

malnutritionpathway@franklincoms.co.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Holdoway A, Donald M, Hodge A (2023) Supporting people with cancer to manage nutrition throughout the cancer journey. Cancer Nursing Practice. doi: 10.7748/cnp.2023.e1830

Published online: 25 January 2023

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