Nutrition And Movement Are The Two Recovery Tools Bone Cancer Patients Often Forget | Bone Cancer Awareness Month
July is Bone Cancer Awareness Month. When people think about treatment for bone cancer, they usually picture the big milestones: surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and finally hearing the words, “Your treatment is complete.” But recovery doesn’t start when treatment is over. Recovery is part of treatment itself.
The treatment of bone cancer takes a huge metabolic toll on the body. Surgery puts a strain on tissues. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause fatigue, muscle loss, loss of appetite and slower healing. Muscles get weak, bones get less strong after weeks of immobility, so even the simple things like going up stairs and carrying groceries can be surprisingly hard. The good news is that two powerful tools can have a dramatic impact on how well the body rebounds. Those tools are nutrition and physical activity.
“Nutrition is not about eating more food,” says Dr. Nikhil Tandon, Consultant, Orthopedic Oncology, Yashoda Medicity. “It's about giving the body the raw materials it needs to rebuild itself. Every meal is an opportunity to rebuild damaged tissues, to strengthen the immune system, to preserve muscle mass, to increase energy.”
Dr. Tandon adds that adequate protein intake is one of the biggest priorities during recovery. Proteins provide the amino acids necessary to repair muscles, bones, skin, and surgical wounds. Eggs, milk, curd, paneer, Greek yogurt, dals, beans, soy products like tofu, fish, chicken, lean meat are good sources. Patients also benefit from spreading most of their daily protein intake out over breakfast, lunch, dinner and healthy snacks rather than consuming it all in one meal, to support continuous muscle repair.
The treatment of bone cancer takes a huge metabolic toll on the body. Surgery puts a strain on tissues. Chemotherapy and radiation can cause fatigue, muscle loss, loss of appetite and slower healing. Muscles get weak, bones get less strong after weeks of immobility, so even the simple things like going up stairs and carrying groceries can be surprisingly hard. The good news is that two powerful tools can have a dramatic impact on how well the body rebounds. Those tools are nutrition and physical activity.
“Nutrition is not about eating more food,” says Dr. Nikhil Tandon, Consultant, Orthopedic Oncology, Yashoda Medicity. “It's about giving the body the raw materials it needs to rebuild itself. Every meal is an opportunity to rebuild damaged tissues, to strengthen the immune system, to preserve muscle mass, to increase energy.”
Dr. Tandon adds that adequate protein intake is one of the biggest priorities during recovery. Proteins provide the amino acids necessary to repair muscles, bones, skin, and surgical wounds. Eggs, milk, curd, paneer, Greek yogurt, dals, beans, soy products like tofu, fish, chicken, lean meat are good sources. Patients also benefit from spreading most of their daily protein intake out over breakfast, lunch, dinner and healthy snacks rather than consuming it all in one meal, to support continuous muscle repair.