Treatment Phases: What to Expect

Your nutritional needs change as you progress through the phases of your cancer. When you can foresee challenges and work proactively to counteract them, you'll put some control back in your life.

• DIAGNOSIS
• PRE-TREATMENT
• ACTIVE TREATMENT
• RECOVER

Diagnosis

Cancer. The word and its aftermath send you reeling. You're probably experiencing one of the most emotionally stressful times of your life. Feeling overwhelmed and out of control is common. With everything else you have to think about, you may not think you have the mind space to devote to nutrition, but building your nutritional stores now is an important part of preparing for treatment. Your nutritional status is critical to staying on track with treatment, fighting infection and coping with side effects

It is much easier to prevent muscle breakdown than to reverse it. During this phase, you will likely want to focus on foods that are higher in protein, an especially important part of your diet right now. Eating these foods grows your strength for what's ahead, and will make the effects of cancer and its treatments easier to withstand. Healthy eating and nutritional support now will help keep up your strength, prevent muscle from breaking down, rebuild tissue and maintain your defenses against infection while you undergo treatment.

Eating enough food to get the nutrients you need probably was not a problem when you were healthy, but can be more challenging now. Here are some additions to your diet that can help build up your nutritional stores as you prepare for treatment:

• Add BENEPROTEIN^® to favorite foods and beverages for added energy and strength
• Use RESOURCE BREEZE^® to wash down medications
• Drink BOOST^® HIGH PROTEIN cold—or try it frozen

Pre-Treatment

After you've been diagnosed with cancer, your healthcare team will work with you to develop a clear treatment plan. That doesn't mean you're stuck in a waiting game. There are many ways to use nutrition to your advantage now so you'll be better prepared down the road—and more confident about what to expect

Be proactive. Your body is going to require an abundance of protein and calories to cope with treatment and its side effects. In the week leading up to your treatment, be sure to eat a variety of healthy foods that are high in protein, calories and other nutrients, including fish oils. These are essential for preventing fatigue, muscle loss and potential nutritional imbalances or deficiencies, while simultaneously strengthening your body's immune response.

Drinking IMPACT^® ADVANCED RECOVERY^™ can also help. In fact, more than a decade of strong scientific data shows that patients who use IMPACT ADVANCED RECOVERY three times a day for five days before treatment benefit from a decreased risk of infection, fewer complications and shorter hospital stays.^1,2

Remember: You are a key member of your healthcare team.

Active Treatment

While undergoing treatment, your appetite will most likely change. Some days you may not feel up to eating, and on others you'll have a taste for foods you've never liked before. Eating healthy after diagnosis helps, but proper nutrition is paramount during this stage. By consuming essential nutrients, you give your body what it needs to replenish your nutritional reserves as you heal. You also help make treatment easier.

Diets rich in protein and calories provide maximum energy for your body to better cope with side effects and some patients are even able to receive higher doses of treatments because they are well nourished. In fact, getting the nutrients you need can positively impact how effective some cancer treatments are. Options like GLUTASOLVE^® and BENECALORIE^® can help ensure you get the nutrients essential for this stage. Talk to a registered dietitian (R.D.) to learn more about your individual nutritional needs. Your R.D. can also help you plan meals, build grocery lists, share what has worked for other patients and point out foods that may help ease side effects such as constipation and nausea.

During this phase, you may find you simply don't feel up to going to the market, so planning ahead will help ensure you get the nutrients you need. Be sure to stock up so you won't have to shop as often, or have someone else take care of the shopping for you. Make sure you have foods you know you can eat while you are sick. This way you'll be able to get the nutrients you need to heal, even on the most challenging days.

Foods like pudding, peanut butter, tuna, cheese and eggs need little preparation; keeping them readily available will help you power up when your energy is low. You may also want to try cooking in advance and freezing single servings. While tackling the challenges of treatment, your family and friends are there to support you. Don't shy away from asking them to help you cook and grocery shop; they want to help you stay strong.

Recovery

You have hurdled the challenges of treatment, but your body still needs time to recover. Easing your way back to regular meals may help you regain some independence and feel more normal. Some foods may not be as appealing as before, or you may not have the energy to cook. That's okay and perfectly normal. Try adding BENEPROTEIN^® and BENECALORIE^® to foods and drinking RESOURCE^® BREEZE to help fight fatigue and gain back your strength.

Here are some suggestions to help you get back to eating:

• Start slowly. Graduate to more solid foods after beginning with a liquid diet.
• Turn to the supermarket salad bar and other healthy prepared meal options at first while your energy continues to grow.
• When you are ready to start cooking again, prepare simple, easy meals from familiar recipes.
• Make meals when you feel up to cooking and freeze single-serving portions to eat later when you may not have the energy for it.
• Think about what made mealtimes special before your cancer journey, and recreate the rituals to help you remember.