Why is nutritional counseling important for cancer patients?

Cancer and its treatments (e.g., chemotherapy, immunotherapy, or radiation) place high demands on the body and significantly affect metabolism, appetite, and nutrient absorption. Targeted nutritional counseling is therefore a central component of holistic oncological care.

The goals of nutritional counseling are:

• Prevention, detection, and treatment of malnutrition, which can negatively affect the course of therapy and prognosis if left unaddressed
• Support for physical resilience, the immune system, and regeneration
• Alleviation of therapy-related side effects such as loss of appetite, nausea, weight loss, taste changes, or digestive problems
• Maintenance of muscle mass and body weight to improve quality of life and therapy tolerance

Nutritional counseling thus plays a key role in positively influencing the course of the disease and improving quality of life during and after cancer treatment.

Our GITZ book recommendation: Cancer Cells Don’t Like Raspberries by Richard Béliveau