Severe weight loss - Cachexia

Patients with cancer frequently experience a gradual unintended weight loss. Weight loss is the result of a specific protein-calorie undernutrition which develops in 40% of the cases and which depends on the type and stage of cancer and on the side effects of the cancer therapy being administered. This specific protein-calorie undernutrition is called cancer cachexia.

Cancer-associated undernutrition is a complex syndrome caused by a number of factors which, together, contribute to the following two conditions:

• reduced food intake, frequently due to loss of appetite (anorexia) and to a serious of side effects in patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiotherapy (nausea, sore mouth, diarrhoea);
• cancer can cause a change in the body’s metabolism, which can result in a reduced appetite and weight loss.

Your doctor can help you understand what is happening to your weight and make sure you get the right help and advice to manage it.

Nutrition therapy plays a crucial role in the multidisciplinary treatment of cancer patients, both to overcome the state of undernutrition and to prepare the body to cope with cancer therapies.

Source: Nutrizioneoncologia.it

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