Effects of nutrition and physical exercise intervention in palliative cancer patients: A randomized controlled trial.

Uster A, Ruehlin M, Mey S, Gisi D, Knols R, Imoberdorf R, Pless M, Ballmer PE.

Clin Nutr. 2018 Aug;37(4):1202-1209

Over a 3-month period, 58 patients with advanced lung or gastrointestinal cancer received either the usual care or a ≥3 standardized individual nutritional counselling sessions and joined in a 60-min exercise program twice a week. This was a single-centre, two-arm, parallel group study that showed the global health status/QoL scores improved in both groups, but this was not statistically significant between groups. The intervention group had less nausea and vomiting compared to the control group (p < 0.01). Body weight increased in both groups however there was a statistically significant increase in daily protein intake in the intervention group whilst a decrease in the control group (p = 0.01). There was no difference for physical performance in both groups; this study was however stopped due to slow accrual.

Composed by Elaine Boland