Evaluation of food intake and body composition of women in chemotherapy for breast cancer

• Grant number: 19/09337-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: November 01, 2019
• End date: October 31, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Nutrition - Nutritional Analysis of Population
• Principal Investigator: Alceu Afonso Jordão Junior
• Grantee: Sarah Carreira Rufato
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer in women in many countries. The most common treatment is chemotherapy, however, it has numerous side effects that impair the quality of life of the woman being treated. The aggressiveness of chemotherapeutics may lead to different alterations; some of them are the physiological changes that result in changes in the alimentary behavior, interfering in the nutritional quality of the organism, in the corporal composition and in the emotional aspects of the cancer patient. It is known that women in these conditions feel more appreciation for sweet foods and lose sensitivity to other flavors. In addition, some studies have shown that women undergoing treatment have metabolic alterations capable of causing changes in their body composition. Thus, the analysis of food intake as well as the changes in the same throughout the treatment tends to be a fundamental tool to understand the side effects of chemotherapy. Objectives: To evaluate dietary intake and possible changes in diet and body composition of women with breast cancer throughout the chemotherapy treatment. Methodology: A longitudinal prospective study will be carried out with 60 women from a rehabilitation nucleus for breast cancer. The volunteers will be submitted to a clinical questionnaire, quality of life questionnaire, food survey, anthropometry (weight and height measurement, arm circumference (CB), waist circumference (WC), hip circumference (QC), (PCB), subscapular cutaneous fold (PCSE) and suprailiac cutaneous fold (PCSI)), dynamometry, bioelectrical impedance (BIA), and assessment of nutritional status by body mass index (BMI) and body mass index adjusted for fat mass (BMIfat). (AU)