Tendências Atuais em Oncologia Ginecológica

Abstrato

Nutrition and its Important Role in Maintaining an Adequate Immunity during Chemotherapy

Hoefel AL and Poltronieri TS

There is a high rate of cancer, particularly gynecological and breast cancers among American women. Chemotherapy is commonly used as a means of treating this disease, but it can cause a range of undesirable side effects. Studies have therefore been undertaken in an attempt to identify complementary forms of treatment which may reduce these side effects, and a number of compounds have produced promising results. Examples of these are the fatty acids omega-3, β-glucan, and glutamine, all of which have been shown to increase immunity to gynaecological cancer, and have brought about improvements in the general clinical state of patients undergoing oncological therapy. However, studies also need to be carried out to increase our understanding of the beneficial properties of particular types of nutritional substances, and of developing diagnostic methods which can detect alterations in the transport of amino-acids to cancerous cells, especially in relation to the metabolic function of glutamine, thus making it easier for medical practitioners to take decisions concerning relevant supplementary nutrition