Abstract
Purpose
Cancer-associated cachexia is a common condition in patients with advanced cancer, and is associated with extreme and involuntary weight loss and irreversible muscle wasting. Despite its high morbidity and mortality, there is no known treatment to reverse its effects. Thus, there is increasing interest in whether diet and exercise can assist in the minimization of cancer-associated cachexia.
Methods
We reviewed the literature on the impact of dietary patterns, dietary components, and exercise on the progress and severity of cancer cachexia.
Results
Although most studies have produced inconclusive or controversial findings, some promising studies using animal models and early human clinical trials suggest that dietary and physical therapy interventions may alleviate cancer-associated cachexia. Moreover, many studies suggest that controlling diet and exercise nevertheless improved the quality of life (QoL) for cancer patients with cachexia.
Conclusion
Ongoing studies will continue to examine whether different forms of multimodal therapy—combinations of cancer treatment, dietary regimens, anti-inflammatory therapy, and physical therapy—are effective methods to improve outcomes in advanced cancer patients with cachexia. Moreover, future studies should examine the effects of such interventions on long-term QoL and establish nutritional guidelines for the management of cancer-associated cachexia.
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Alan J. Kim received support from the Odyssey Metcalf Undergraduate Fellowship from the University of Chicago, Chicago, IL.
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AJK and GCG drafted the article with contributions from DSH. All authors reviewed and commented on subsequent drafts of the manuscript.
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AJK—None. DSH—Grants from Bayer, Lilly, Genentech, LOXO, Pfizer, Amgen, Mirati, Ignyta, Merck, Daichii-Sanko, Eisai, Adaptimmune, Abbvie, Astra-Zeneca, BMS, Genmab, Infinity, Kite, Kyowa, Medimmune, Molecular Template, Novartis, and Takeda; personal fees from Mirna and LOXO; other from Bayer, Baxter, Guidepoint Global, Oncoresponse, Janssen, and Molecular Match; all outside the submitted work. GCG—None.
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Kim, A.J., Hong, D.S. & George, G.C. Diet-related interventions for cancer-associated cachexia. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol 147, 1443–1450 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-021-03592-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00432-021-03592-9