Amber_Thomas_RDN Cancer Nutrition Specialist
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Hi @SuzC ! Thanks so much for the tag, @LouiseJ . I agree with all of these wonderful suggestions offered here! I would like to add a couple more points to consider as you plan foods and beverages to have around Christmas time. What types of foods is she able to tolerate right now? This may guide you a bit on foods that…
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Hi @Rozalia ! Thanks for the tag, @LouiseJ 🙂 I hear your frustrations. In my experience, it's not unusual to have the experiences you're having with regard to weight gain and increased appetite on Letrozole. As Lou mentioned, the type of medication you're taking tends to have similar side effects, but it may be worth…
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@RobertA Thank you for sharing! Your insight in the matter is spot on. Eating and enjoying foods that sound good are part of the variety I often speak about, and can absolutely help us feel good physically and mentally!
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Hi @VincentG ! Thanks for your question! It can be hard to find foods that are appealing, especially when you don't have an appetite most of the time. Without knowing more of your story, allow me to share a couple of questions you may find helpful to ask yourself when selecting meals and snacks: How do I physically feel…
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@LouiseJ Hi! I am so sorry as I don't know how I missed your question! You certainly aren't alone in either your thoughts or your struggles. Especially with COVID, we are even more limited on what we can do, how we feel, what coping mechanisms we use, etc. The research on maintaining weight loss is dismal; somewhere…
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Hi @Mary78! I'm so glad you found the video helpful 😊 It's hard to know how foods labeled anti-inflammatory can help in a practical way, such as mitigating those aches and pains. Most of the research implies that certain foods may affect inflammation in the body, but we really don't have information on real food affecting…
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@puppy3 , thanks for the follow-up information! Ideally, his medical/surgical team is aware of his drinking history. They may be able to guide him more specifically on goals to decrease the amount of alcohol prior to surgery to avoid withdrawal symptoms. There are studies that show limitng/avoiding alcohol prior to surgery…
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@puppy3 , you are most welcome! It really depends on your father's history with alcohol prior to surgery, and what level of drinking he wants to continue in this short time before planned surgery. In general, I recommend he refrain from drinking from now until his surgery. If your father has a strong history of alcohol use…
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Hi @puppy3 ! Thanks for reaching out with some great questions. The most important thing before surgery is to avoid the blockage. It appears that his surgery will be in about two weeks? The way he needs to eat right now is only temporary. While his diet won't have loads of variety, it should focus on enough protein and…
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Hi @Eve96706 ! Thank you for your thoughtful question! I know many people are curious and want to know more about eating keto. I have a number of follow up questions to gain more clarity on what you hope and expect from following this diet. What led to you trying the keto diet in the first place? - When I've asked this of…
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Hi everyone! Thank you to those who joined us last week on our LIVE Q&A video chat! I had a great time, and hope you found the session valuable. Here are the resources I spoke about as part of that session. Iron In Food If your oncology team suggests you eat more foods high in iron due to anemia, here are some ideas of…
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Hi @Jee_woz . Thank you so much for the additional information! You've really helped me understand better. First, you've experienced so much! Please allow yourself both the space and time to process this 💜 I see two particular pieces of information I would like to explore further. Your weight increased dramatically while…
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Hi @Jee_woz ! I'm so sorry you're experiencing such intense pain around the changes in your body. Please know that you're not alone. I would love to get a clearer picture of what you've experienced and clarify some of the details. From your post, it sounds like you've experienced this increase in weight since the start of…
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Hi @Terolyn ! I'm so sorry to hear about the constipation. That can be so very uncomfortable! There are many variables here we can discuss to see how to minimize the risk of this happening in the future, but for now, let's see if some of these suggestions help right now. How much of the Senecal have you taken? Did you…
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Hi @LouiseJ ! You are most welcome! I'm so glad the information was helpful. Such great questions as well! I can't wait to see the questions we couldnt get to here in the forum!
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Hi @tigger2 ! Thanks so much for your thoughtful question. You are absolutely on the right track! That umami flavor, a deeply rich and usually savory flavor, can help with the metallic taste. In addition to umami, sweet and sour combinations may help. If you experience mouth sores on any level, the sour foods may not be…
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Hi @RUTHDUIGNAN ! You will have radiation to the chest area, correct? In my experience, radiation to the chest has fairly low side effects as far as limiting what you can eat and drink. Most people experienced some fatigue, but nothing worse than you experienced from chemo. If your esophagus is in the treatment field…
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Hi @Frankie1 ! It's my pleasure :) And thank you for the clarifying and follow up information. There are no reported interactions between your specific immunotherapy drug and biotin. Unfortunately, there's really no clinical evidence that you can increase or boost the function of your immune system with a multivitamin. If…
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Hi @Frankie1 ! Thank you for this question! Based on the information I'm able to pull from my Natural Medicines Database, there aren't any known or documented interactions between biotin and some of the common medications used for hypertension, and no interactions show between biotin and a sampling of immunotherapy drugs…
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Hi @Ewez ! Thank you for your thoughful question! I'll start first by addressing the possible interactions between Tamoxifen and the dietary/herbal supplements you are taking. The ones mentioned below indicates there is an interaction of sorts, and would not be recommended. anti-oxidant complex - it depends on what…
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@Vincent5 Hi Soph! Thank you so much for this thoughtful question! You're correct in that I can provide more specific information when you and your friend are aware of her treatment plan. In the meantime, allow me to provide some guidance around what she may be feeling with regard to eating and diet. It's very common to…
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Hi @Londoner56 ! Thank you so much for your question! Could you provide me a little bit more information about your eating patterns? Why you feel they aren't well balanced? Official research organizations recommend eating more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains while limiting the amounts of red meat (beef, pork,…
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My pleasure, @RUTHDUIGNAN !
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Hi @RUTHDUIGNAN ! Thank you so much for your thoughtful question. I agree with @LouiseJ and hope I can expand on the subject a bit to provide some clarity and guidance. First, the experiences you describe from chemo sound very familiar; fatigue, loss of strength and muscle tone. If you had ups and downs to your appetite…
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Hi @Stephen12 ! I'm so sorry to hear how strongly your appetite has been affected! It sounds like you have some significant barriers to eating and drinking enough right now! Here are some suggestions based on the information you provided: Complete lack of appetite - It's clear you recognize that receiving nourishment is so…
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Hi @Chlogamble ! And thanks for putting us in touch, @LizzyB73 :) I hope I can put your mind at ease on this subject. I assume your nutritionist told you to stop taking vitamin C during treatment, because of it's antioxidant qualities. Using supplement forms of antioxidants like Vitamin C tabs during cancer treatment is…
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Hi @mrbrn12 (Marie :)) Thank you so much for this question! While some data on tamoxifen suggests the weight changes aren't from the drug itself, but the hormonal changes in the body while on the drug, it doesn't make the situation any less challenging. In order to make a more clinical estimation on diet adequacy and…
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Hi @DeniseFu, I'm so sorry you're experiencing such symptoms! Dosing pancreatic enzymes is a fairly customized process, as it's helpful to know what types of foods you are eating, when the diarrhea occurs (after every meal, only certain meals, right away, etc), and if they all look fairly the same (floating, smelling,…
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Hi @MrsT , I'm so glad you found the information helpful and that your doctor confirmed you can take the vitamin D. It's my pleasure! Please don't hesitate to reach out with further questions!
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@Markus, I've heard great things about the calm app, so I'm glad you've found it beneficial as well! We definitely have a number of integrative medicine clinics and practices here in the States. I've asked some of my colleagues about clinics in the UK, but have yet to here back. It my is pleasure! Please feel free to ask…