Over the years, my patients and I found it frustrating that other health professionals downplayed the importance of diet, saying that cancer patients should eat whatever they wanted to. My patients told me that their oncologists’ offices offered sugary processed foods.

Recently, however, researchers have reported that making healthy lifestyle choices translates to better outcomes. I wrote a newsletter in September 2022 about a study in colon cancer.

On May 4, 2023, the journal JAMA Open published an article entitled “Adherence to Cancer Prevention Lifestyle Recommendations Before, During and 2 Years After Treatment for High-risk Breast Cancer.” Patients with healthier lifestyles were significantly less likely to have a cancer recurrence or to die from any cause.

SOURCE: journalofadvancednursing.blogspot.com

The authors asked study participants about parameters including physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption, intake of sugar-sweetened beverages, and smoking. Other parameters were also tracked, but the ones I listed had the strongest association with improved outcomes. The authors conclude that more research is needed, as investigators hoping for more funding always do.

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I hope that this kind of research will motivate the oncology world to get the junk food out of the offices and treatment rooms, and be more supportive of those who opt for a healthy lifestyle.