Alternative diets for treating cancer

Macmillan Cancer Support Medical Reference

Over the past few years there has been a lot of publicity about alternative diets for treating cancer. You may have heard about diets that advise people with cancer not to eat meat or dairy produce and suggest drinking large amounts of fruit or vegetable juice. Some recommend taking large doses of vitamins.

Many dramatic claims of cures for people with advanced cancer have been made. It is completely understandable that people with cancer should be attracted to diets that seem to offer the hope of a cure. However, there is little scientific evidence that these diets can make a cancer shrink, increase a person’s chance of survival, or cure the disease. As these diets have not yet been properly studied, their real effect is uncertain.

Some people do get pleasure and satisfaction from preparing these special diets, but others find them quite boring and even unpleasant to eat and time-consuming to prepare. A further problem is that some of the alternative diets are very expensive, and some can make people lose a lot of weight. Some may be very harmful to people with cancer.

It can be very confusing to be faced with conflicting advice about what to eat, but most doctors and specialist nurses recommend a well-balanced diet that you enjoy.

If you have any queries about alternative diets, or are thinking of following one, you can get further advice from your doctor, specialist nurse or dietitian.

For more information on eating well during and after cancer treatment, and further support to deal with the practical and emotional effects of cancer, visit Macmillan Cancer Support’s website.