Integrating Nutrition Into the Continuum of Cancer Care

Welcome to a very special edition of OncLive^® On Air! I’m your host today, Jessica Hergert.

OncLive^® On Air is a podcast from OncLive, which provides oncology professionals with the resources and information they need to provide the best patient care. In both digital and print formats, OncLive covers every angle of oncology practice, from new technology to treatment advances to important regulatory decisions.

Today, we had the pleasure of speaking with Refaat Hegazi, MD, PhD, MPH, to discuss nutrition concerns among patients with cancer, including protein and calorie malnutrition, micronutrient deficiency, electrolyte imbalance, dehydration, and loss of muscle mass or function.

Early intervention for patients with cancer who are at risk of severe weight or muscle loss is critical to ensure that optimal nutritional care is implemented as soon as possible, explained Hegazi. Additionally, giving specialized nutrients to patients may prevent muscle degradation by increasing protein levels.

Close monitoring of a patient’s nutritional status is important, as loss of muscle mass and function has been associated with a worse prognosis. Moreover, patients experiencing malnutrition appear to have an increased risk of infection, pressure injury, and resistance to therapy.

In our exclusive interview, Dr. Hegazi, medical director of Adult Nutrition at Abbott, shed light on nutrition-related issues among patients with cancer, early intervention strategies for patients who experience loss of muscle mass and function, and the use of specialized nutrients to prevent muscle degradation.