DOES PARENTERAL-NUTRITION INCREASE TUMOR-GROWTH - A REVIEW

Total parenteral nutrition (TPN) is a supportive therapy commonly used in clinical oncology, in spite of its possible interference on tumor growth. In fact, studies performed on animals have demonstrated that T PN increases tumor growth and that load and quality of amino acids are probably the main factors involved. In contrast, some authors obtaine d a decrease in tumor growth using a special amino acids mixture or a TPN formula rich in lipids. However, data collected on animals are not transferable to humans owing to the large difference between tumor-ho st weight ratio and tumor doubling time. Analysis of the studies on ef fect of TPN on tumor growth in humans has not demonstrated a bad effec t, but the results reported in the literature are limited by the small number of patients, the lack of a sure and reproducible method to ana lyze tumor growth, and some methodologic defects. In conclusion, it is not evident that TPN is dangerous for cancer patients. However, it ma y be possible in the future to employ different formulas to improve th e host nutritional status and inhibit tumor growth.