Cancer cachexia and treatment-induced side effects can contribute to deterioration in nutritional status in patients declining the quality of life and survival rates. Culinary practices may provide new strategies to minimize the symptoms. NEODIA (learning to live with a cancer on a day - to-day basis) is an observational program whose objective is to better understand the occurrence of treatment-related side effects as well as culinary and dietary habits in cancer patients followed in the Cancer Unit of the Beauvais City Hospital, France. First study step in 2010 has investigated culinary solutions to improve the quality of life of the patient at home. The present part tries in particular to answer the question if the culinary advising is transposable to the offer of restoration proposed by institutions of care in oncology. We first conducted an investigation on the determinants of quality of life in patients currently treated in a hospital service involving 41 people. In a second step, we are collecting information on the food supply itself, using advising of some patient’s specially prepared to test meals as a translational research expertise. The results of our survey show that patient’s remarks constitute real guidelines to adapt the practices in culinary production and healthy catering management. Based on these results, the consistency of frozen prepared meals has been analyzed regarding their potential to regulate the under nutrition-inducing treatment-related side effects. Conducted by the patient’s panel of the translational research group the study highlights the benefits of agro-food products and margins of progress.
A recent retrospective analysis showed that the rate of malnutrition in cancer patients is greater than 55% with 5% weight loss [
Cancer, as once fatal disease has become a chronic condition, because chemotherapy can today stabilize the disease advancement, even in metastatic stages [
According to the individual situations, patients can experience olfacto-gustatory distortions, swallowing difficulties, dental receding, canker sores, gingivitis, a drying mouth, bowel and stomach pain, nausea, cognitive problems, constipation, or conversely a diarrhea [
The observational program NEODIA is focused on the dietary and cooking behaviour of cancer patients. Going beyond the recommendations of the French Society of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism (SFNEP), the program is the first study interested in promoting the reappropriation of the “cooking space” by the patients in their homes, considering that this is a crucial setting to prevent and reduce malnutrition.
Data were collected in 197 cancer in- or out-patients (31.6% colorectal cancer, 27.6% breast cancer, 7.9% non-Hodgkinien lymphoma, 7.5% esophageal/gastric cancer, 6.6% liver cancer, 5% lung cancer, and others) who were receiving treatment at the Department of Oncology of the Beauvais City Hospital, France. The validated 145-item questionnaire inquired the occurrence and frequency of treatment-induced side effects, making correlations with frequency and consumption of food and beverages as well as culinary habits [
This free multi-display medium is certified by the regional agency of health (ARS Hauts de France), the French National Program of Diet (PNA) power through the initiative “eating is everybody’s business”, and the French league against cancer (departmental committee of Oise).
The web site allows inquiring about major side effects, promotes the use of appropriate culinary techniques, and the use of specific spices and aromatic plants as well as dietary recommendations. Internet user can ask their questions, geo-locate charities or associations promoting health. In addition, patients and caregivers can offer their own recipe suggestions to enrich the library of existing recipes that are subject to the validation by the NEODIA research group before online publication.
Culinary education regular workshops for cancer patients were firstly implemented in the Beauvais hospital in early 2015. A standardized ongoing training dedicated for caregiver’s staffs was also established to transfer this knowledge. Numerous meetings and conferences in France involving 160 hospitals to facilitate local initiatives have been held by the NEODIA experts.
Despite this success to improve the quality of life of the patient at home, the program tries in particular to answer the question if the culinary advising is transposable to the offer of restoration proposed by institutions of care in Oncology. To answer this question, we first conducted an investigation on the determinants of dietary behaviour in patients currently treated in a hospital service. In a second step, we are collecting information on the food supply itself.
To do this, we have worked in a sensory analysis laboratory with a panel of trained patients followed in the same hospital. We know that each medical institution possess a specific restauration system, directly managed or granted a catering operator, homemade or coming from a central kitchen, or even resorting to the agri-food industry that provides ready-made solutions. According to the data emerging from our survey, we’ve evaluated the adequacy of the “healthy catering card” (HCC) being developed by the agri-food group DAVIGEL for other pathologies or specific nutritional situations to the needs of cancer care units. This model of supply, based on products made by the agri-food industry offers highly standardized dishes, frozen and ready-made, which is likely to reduce the day-to-day dietary variability in our study and secures our experimental protocol. The palatability tests that we have conducted with the panel of patients may allow completing our innovative culinary approach.
The study of the food supply in a hospital took place in 2014 following two phases. Firstly a specific survey was conducted in Beauvais hospital center (BHC), in which the restoration works in direct management. This monocentric study has been limited to outpatients and week in-patients departments. Indeed, the radiotherapy department offers no catering service. The food supply of palliative care service is very specific since it is tailored to the needs of the patient at the end of life, so was not included in the study. The survey includes major patients treated with chemotherapy for 3 to 6 months. Among them, 17% also received radiation therapy. The sample comprised 44% of retirees, consists of 56% of women and 44% of men between the ages of 45 and 60. Men have been mainly treated for colorectal cancer or lung cancer (
In the present study, the 8 cancer bearing women could all participate in 6 working sessions without problems and supervised by our staff.