What new developments in nutrition information for cancer patients are most important for people to know?
A lot of promising new research is being done currently, mostly related to symptom management and complimentary therapies. It seems that 50% of my job is combating misinformation, and debunking myths that patients may have heard about. There is a lot of quackery and mass marketing of supplements that may potentially cause harm, and we have an ethical obligation to educate patients and offer evidence-based information. Regarding supplements, we spend a lot of time educating patients and families about quality assurance, safety, and efficacy. We try to direct them to reliable resources to review and offer safe alternatives. One of my favorite Internet resources is www.quackwatch.com. It’s a good place to look when you hear about something new that sounds too good to be true. Another great resource on the web is cancerrd.com which is a site created by another dietitian, Diana Dyer, M.S.,R.D. who is a cancer survivor and research dietitian for the American Cancer Society. She includes meal
