Foods dense in nutrients can boost the energy levels of cancer patients

Posted by rob on March 22, 2006 under Uncategorized | Be the First to Comment

By JUDITH W. WINNE
Courier-Post Staff

It’s not hard to imagine the crippling stress in Teresa Kao’s life.

Diagnosed with breast cancer in December 2004, the Voorhees patient underwent chemotherapy, surgery and radiation. The deaths of her mother and brother, within six months of her diagnosis, deepened her sorrow, as well as the worry line in her brow.

Now, Kao’s spirits have lifted, helped in great part by a free, local program that emphasizes nontraditional therapies and practices — meditation, restorative yoga, massage, acupuncture and nutrition.

“I think I feel much more serene and much more positive now,” said the 56-year-old Kao. “It made a big difference in my life.”

Next month, the Dr. Diane Barton Complementary Medicine Program at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey at Cooper kicks off a series of nutrition workshops in Voorhees called Fighting Cancer With Food.

The first topic, called Nutrition and Cancer, is April 4. Other sessions for cancer patients will spotlight fatigue-fighting, organic and fiber-rich foods, as well as other nutrition-related subjects.

Alicia Michaux, the cancer institute’s oncology dietitian, noted that for patients who have had treatment for their cancer, there are special problems.

“Fatigue is a common side effect,” said Michaux. “Some of the foods that are more energizing are the foods that are nutrient-dense. For example, foods that have an adequate amount of protein in them, chicken, fish, eggs, low-fat cheese.

“Things that are nutrient-dense aren’t filled with empty calories. I try not to encourage a lot of sugar and processed foods just because they contain a lot of empty calories, and they fill patients up. Protein in the body helps rebuild and replenish muscle mass, so it can actually help patients in their strengthening process, and continue with the treatment and help them fight fatigue.”

Michaux, 30, said a diet of well-balanced, whole foods is the goal. Such meals are obviously a smart choice for everyone, whether they have cancer or not.

The emphasis is on sensible, rather than fad or oddball, diets. Advocates in the program stress the word complementary, rather than alternative, medicine.

Their point is that the medicine is meant as an adjunct to surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, not an alternative to them.

Indeed, the program is named for Dr. Diane Barton of Moorestown, a beloved physician who died of ovarian cancer last summer.

“This was her dream,” said Bonnie Mehr, who heads the complementary medicine program and was Barton’s friend for a decade. “Diane believed in the mind/body connection.”

Dr. Generosa Grana, Barton’s friend and oncologist, said Barton had pushed her to get a program going. Grana, the director of Cooper’s cancer institute, noted that patients find practices like restorative yoga useful and healing.

“It helps them deal, not just with the physical, but the emotional, aspects of the disease,” said Grana.

Food is woven into the fabric of the complementary medicine program. At Live, Lunch and Learn sessions, participants munch on healthy, free lunches as Cindy Faust leads members in discussions that range from anger to sexuality. (The next session is 11:30 a.m. March 30 .)

“Food has to become a lifestyle,” said Faust, a Cherry Hill clinical social worker who battled breast cancer more than a quarter century ago.

“Eating healthy is fun,” said Faust. “It’s creative. It doesn’t have to be difficult at all. And it helps you take responsibility for your own health. It’s something you can do.”

Faust, now 56, turned to vegetarianism.

“I believe it helped keep me alive,” she said.

Good nutrition is often a priority, or should be, for those battling a serious illness and those who want to prevent cancer. The American Institute for Cancer Research, an organization that fosters research on diet and cancer prevention, notes that the majority of research on diet and cancer suggests eating fruit, vegetables, whole grains and beans will lower the risk of developing cancer.

Antioxidants in blueberries and tomatoes have been tagged as cancer-fighting foods. Of course, patients have no guarantees that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains will prevent cancer or its reoccurrence. But like any insurance policy consumers buy, a good diet is surely a sound investment.

“I’m very conscious of food and nutrition,” said Mary McCall of Deptford. McCall received a grim diagnosis of Stage Four bladder cancer seven years ago. Remarkably, she recovered. Three years ago, she was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia. There is no cure, but her treatment is an oral form of chemotherapy, said the 64-year-old McCall.

McCall, 64, has found yoga helpful in coping with pain and swelling in her legs, a result of cancer surgery.

A huge fan of the complementary medicine program, she nevertheless noted the toll cancer has taken.

“You’re a wounded warrior,” she said.

Barton, the complementary medicine program’s namesake, a woman who died too young at 46, would have likely understood.

“She was one gutsy lady who tried everything and fought for what she believed in,” said Faust. “It (the program) is a fitting tribute to her.”

Reach Judith W. Winne at (856) 486-2441 or jwinne@courierpostonline.com
Published: March 22. 2006 3:00AM

CourierPostOnline – South Jersey’s Web Site