Effect of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on nutritional status in patients with gastric cancer during chemotherapy
Abstract
Background: Although some studies have shown positive effects of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation on nutritional status of cancer patients undergoing different treatments, there is no consistency in results. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of omega-3 fatty acid on the nutritional status of gastric cancer patients during the course of chemotherapy.
Methods: In a double-blind clinical trial, 30 adult patients with gastric cancer receiving chemotherapy were randomized into a supplement and a placebo groups and given daily, for 6 weeks, a 3-g omega-3 fatty acid supplement (containing 1.8g eicosapentaeonic plus 1.2g docosahexaenoic acid) and oral paraffin, respectively. Anthropometric data was collected and nutritional status assessed at the beginning,at week 4 and at the end of week 6. The data were analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA and independent sample t-test.
Results: The findings indicated that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation increased body weight, mean daily intake of energy and macronutrients, serum levels of transferrin and albumin at the end of the 6-week period significantly (p<0.05). All these variables decreased in the placebo group (p<0.05). The increases in body weight, energy and carbohydrate intakes, and serum levels of albumin in the supplement group were time-dependent (p<0.05).
Conclusion: The results of present study showed that omega-3 fatty acid supplementation can improve nutritional status in patients with gastric cancer during the course of chemotherapy. We recommend using omega-3 fatty acid supplement in patients with gastric cancer during chemotherapy.
Laviano A, Meguid MM. Nutritional issues in cancer management. Nutrition 1996; 12: 71-358.
Bozzetti F. Nutrition and gastrointestinal cancer.Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care 2001; 4: 541.
Fearon KC, Voss AC, Hustead DS .Definition of cancer cachexia: effect of weight loss, reduced food intake, and systemic inflammation on functional status and prognosis. Am J Clin Nutr 2006; 83: 1345-50.
DeWys W, Begg C, Lavin P, Band P, Bennett J, Bertino J. Tormey, DC. Prognostic effect of weight loss prior to chemotherapy in cancer patients. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group. Am J Med 1980; 69:491-7.
Andreyev H, Norman A, Oates J, Cunningham D. Why do patients with weight loss have a worse outcome when undergoing chemotherapy for gastrointestinal malignancies? Eur J Cancer 1998;34: 503-9.
Rickard KA, Detamore CM, Coates TD, Grosfeld JL, Weetman RM, White NM, et al. Effect of nutrition staging on treatment delays and outcome in stage IV neuroblastoma. Cancer 1983; 52: 587-98.
Ovesen L, Hannibal J, Mortensen EL. The interrelationship of weight loss, dietary intake, and quality of life in ambulatory patients with cancer of the lung, breast, and ovary. Nutr Cancer 1993; 19: 159-67.
Stephens N, Fearon K. Anorexia, cachexia and nutrition. Medicine 2008; 3: 78-81.
MacDonald N. Is there evidence for earlier intervention in cancer-associated weight loss? J Support Oncol 2003; 1: 279-86.
Den Broeder E, Lippens R, Van't Hof M, Tolboom J, Van Staveren W, Hofman Z, et al. Effects of naso-gastric tube feeding on the nutritional status of children with cancer. Eur J
Clin Nutr 1998; 52: 494-500.Roberge C, Tran M, Massoud C, Poiree B, Duval N, Damecour E, et al. Quality of life and home enteral tube feeding: a French prospective study in patients with head and neck or oesophageal cancer. Br J Cancer 2000; 82: 263-9.
Van Bokhorst-de Van der Schuer MA, Langendoen SI, Vondeling H, Kuik DJ, Quak JJ, Van Leeuwen PA. Perioperative enteral nutrition and quality of life of severely malnourished head and neck cancer patients: a randomized clinical trial. Clin Nutr 2000; 19: 437-44.
Jho DH, Cole SM, Lee EM, Espat NJ. Role of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation in inflammation and malignancy. Integr Cancer Ther 2004; 3: 98-111.
Elia M. Enteral (oral or tube administration) nutritional support and eicosapentaenoic acid in patients with cancer: a systematic review. Int J Oncol 2006; 28: 5-23.
Hardman WE. (n-3) fatty acids and cancer therapy. J Nutr 2004; 134: 3427S-3430S.
Ajani JA, Moiseyenko VM, Tjulandin S, Majlis A, Constenla M, Boni C, et al. Clinical benefit with docetaxel plus fluorouracil and cisplatin compared with cisplatin and fluorouracil in a phase III trial of advanced gastric or gastroesophageal adenocarcinoma: the V-325 Study Group. J Clin Oncol 2007; 25: 3205-9.Naber TH, Schermer T, de Bree A, Nusteling K, Eggink L, Kruimel JW, et al. Prevalence of malnutrition in nonsurgical hospitalized patients and its association with disease complications. Am J Clin Nutr 1997; 66: 1232-9.
Baker JP, Detsky AS, Wesson DE, Wolman SL, Stewart S, Whitewell J, et al. Nutritional assessment. N Engl J Med 1982; 306: 969-72.
Segura A, Pardo J, Jara C, Zugazabeitia L, Carulla J, de las Peñas R, et al. An epidemiological evaluation of the prevalence of malnutrition in Spanish patients with locally advanced or metastatic cancer. Clin Nutr 2005;
: 801-14.Slaviero KA, Read JA, Clarke SJ, Rivory LP. Baseline nutritional assessment in advanced cancer patients receiving palliative chemotherapy. Nutr Cancer 2003; 46: 148-57.
Strasser F, Luftner D, Possinger K, Ernst G, Ruhstaller T, Meissner W, et al. Comparison of orally dministered cannabis extract and delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol in treating patients with cancerrelated anorexia-cachexia syndrome: a multicenter, phase III, randomized, double-blind,placebocontrolled clinical trial from the Cannabis-In-Cachexia-Study-Group. J Clin Oncol 2006; 24: 3394-400.
Grimble R. Nutritional therapy for cancer cachexia. Gut 2003; 52: 1391-2.
Rose DP, Connolly JM. Omega-3 fatty acids as cancer chemopreventive agents. Pharmacol Ther 1999; 83: 217-44.
Argilés JM, Olivan M, Busquets S, López- Soriano FJ. Optimal management of cancer anorexia– cachexia syndrome. Cancer Manag Res2010; 2: 27-38.
Fearon K, Von Meyenfeldt M, Moses A, Van Geenen R, Roy A, Gouma D, et al. Effect of a protein and energy dense N- ٣fatty acid enriched oral supplement on loss of weight and lean tissue in cancer cachexia: a randomised double blind trial. Gut 2003; 52: 1479-86.
Moses A, Slater C, Preston T, Barber M, Fearon K. Reduced totals energy expenditure and physical activity in cachectic patients with pancreatic cancer can be modulated by an energy and protein dense oral supplement enriched with n-3 fatty acids. Br J Cancer 2004; 90: 996-1002.
Giacosa A, Rondanelli M. Fish oil and treatment of cancer cachexia. Genes Nutr 2008; 3: 25-8.
Kratz M, Callahan HS, Yang PY, Matthys CC, Weigle DS. Dietary n-3-polyunsaturated fatty acids and energy balance in overweight or moderately obese men and women: a randomized controlled trial. Nutr Metab (Lond) 2009; 6: 24.
Kapoor S. Immunomodulatory properties of omega-3 fatty acids: a possible explanation for their systemic, anti-carcinogenic effects. J Leukoc Biol 2009; 85: 2-3.
Goncalves CG, Ramos EJB, Romanova IV, Suzuki S, Chen C, Meguid MM. Omega-3 fatty acids improve appetite in cancer anorexia, but tumor resecting restores it. Surgery 2006; 139:202-8.
Barber MD. Cancer cachexia and its treatment with fish-oil-enriched nutritional supplement- ation. Nutrition 2001; 17: 751-5.
| Files | ||
| Issue | Vol 1, No 1 (winter 2015) | |
| Section | Original Article(s) | |
| Keywords | ||
| Omega 3 fatty acid Weight Nutrition Gastric cancer Chemotherapy | ||
| Rights and permissions | |
|
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |
