I’m being treated for breast cancer. Do I need to change my diet?
The short answer is no, you don’t need to eat a special diet while undergoing treatment for breast cancer. There is limited conclusive evidence that eating or avoiding certain foods aids in cancer recurrence or survival.
Please note that any changes to your diet should be made in consultation with your Breast Surgeon or Medical Oncologist.
However, current scientific research and reports from the World Cancer Research Fund do suggest that certain dietary patterns, consistent with traditional advice for a healthy diet, can have a beneficial effect after breast cancer diagnosis, helping your body to grow and repair cells. Numerous clinical trials have indicated that antioxidant-rich foods and beverages can reduce DNA damage and increase DNA repair capacity (1), both of which can be beneficial for cancer survivors or those undergoing cancer treatment.
So, in an ideal world, your diet would:
be high in fibre, wholegrains, fruits and vegetables;
be low to moderate in dairy;
have a lower intake in total fat, particularly saturated fat;
have a moderate red meat intake (three serves per week);
be low in processed meats, sweets and alcohol;
be complemented by regular exercise.
But for breast cancer patients, it’s not always an ideal world, with nausea and food aversions often brought on by treatment. Many people find that the foods they once enjoyed are no longer desirable, while other foods have become more appealing (2). Stress and anxiety can also affect your appetite, causing you to eat more or less than usual.
How, then, can you make small changes to your diet if eating a regular, healthy diet isn’t achievable? Our dietitian, Joanne Stockings, has some tips and tricks up her sleeve for you:
Try adding more fruit and vegetables to your meals.
Make sure you include salad or vegetables as part of at least two meals per day.
Bulk up stirfrys and casseroles with lots of vegetables.
Add vegetables to toast (e.g. tomato and cheese, avocado and egg or avocado and tomato), or try leftover vegetables on toast.
Grate carrot and zucchini into meals when cooking.
Try adding fruit to your cereal (canned or frozen are ok if you don't have fresh).
Apples, bananas, pears and mandarins can make great easy-to-carry, on-the-go snacks.
Mix berries with nuts for a snack.
Try swapping white for whole grain.
Use multigrain or wholemeal bread, or try different varieties such as pumpernickel, german grain, light or dark rye bread.
Use wholegrain breakfast cereals such as oats, Weetbix, Vita Brits, Special K or All Bran.
Try brown or black rice and wholemeal pasta at dinner.
Try reducing fat and eating less meat.
Trim fat off meat.
Limit processed meats such as ham, bacon and salami.
Reduce meat at dinner and add extra vegetables or lentils or legumes (casseroles, minced dishes and stir fries are easy to reduce meat less noticeably).
As each patient’s diagnosis and treatment plan is different, you should run any diet changes past your doctor. Patients undergoing chemotherapy can sometimes be at an increased risk of infection due to a drop in white blood cells, in which case you may be advised to follow a special diet.
References:
Nordengen, A.L. DNA damage and repair capacity related to diet and exercise: a new dimension in cancer treatment? British Journal of Sports Medicine, 2022.
Breast Cancer Network Australia. Healthy eating. 2022.
Breast Cancer Now. Diet during breast cancer treatment. 2022.