METABOLIC ALTERATION IN PATIENTS WITH CANCER - NUTRITIONAL IMPLICATIONS

During the past 20 years, efforts have been made to elucidate the meta bolic changes observed in patients with cancer by using stable and rad ioactive isotopic tracers. These metabolic changes in patients with ca ncer may be similar to those in other stress conditions, in which gluc ose production and utilization, lipolysis and free fatty acid flux, an d net protein catabolism are increased, Stress hormones, such as gluca gon and catecholamines, and certain cytokines may be responsible for t hese metabolic changes, Although it has been shown that cachexia in pa tients,vith cancer signals a poor prognosis, efforts to improve the cl inical outcomes,vith nutritional support have been disappointing. The failure of cancer patients to respond to nutritional support may be re lated to an alteration in the intermediate metabolism, Therefore, furt her research evaluating the metabolic abnormalities associated with ca ncer may lead to more effective nutritional therapies.