Try marinating meat, chicken or fish in marinades, soy sauce, sweet fruit juices, wine or Italian-style dressings. Try salty, spicy or smoked meats, such as seasoned beef steaks, pork loins, ham, sausage or cold cuts. Try high-protein foods that may taste better cold or at room temperature.
Try sugar-free gum or hard candies with flavors such as mint, lemon, or orange. These flavors can help mask a bitter or metallic taste in the mouth. Avoid red meats if they do not taste good. Try other protein sources like poultry, eggs, fish, peanut butter, beans, or dairy products.
During chemotherapy take a small, bland snack with you. You can try the above foods as well as snack on low acid juices (apple, grape, and fruit nectars), liquid yogurts, fruits such as bananas, and crackers.
For most people the side effects were worst in the first few days after treatment, then they gradually felt better until the next treatment. Some said the effects were worse with each successive treatment. Most side effects don't persist and disappear within a few weeks after the end of treatment.
Be sure to choose dark chocolate that is relatively low in sugar and high in cocoa (and also make sure you're paying attention to calories). And stay away from milk chocolate because it contains far fewer flavonoids than its dark chocolate counterpart.
Neutrophils are white blood cells that serve as our front line of defense. When we're immunocompromised and don't have enough neutrophils, we're called “neutropenic.” So, the chemotherapy patients were put on a so-called neutropenic diet without any fresh fruits and vegetables.
All milk, yogurt, cheese, and other dairy should have the word pasteurized on their containers. Do not eat soft cheeses or cheeses with blue veins (such as Brie, Camembert, Roquefort, Stilton, Gorgonzola, and Bleu). Do not eat Mexican-style cheeses (such as Queso Blanco fresco and Cotija).
o Try soft, smooth, creamy or blended foods that require less chewing as they may be better tolerated. o Try different tasting foods such as sour, salty, sweet or bitter choices. Eating a tart food such as a lemon/lime or orange (or their juices) before a meal may help improve the flavour of meals.
Some raw foods can contain germs that can hurt you when cancer or treatment weakens your immune system. Ask your health care provider about how to eat well and safely. Eggs can have bacteria called Salmonella on their inside and outside. This is why eggs should be cooked completely before eating.
Studies have shown that people who only have chemotherapy treatment start to taste and enjoy food two months after treatment has ended.
If you are currently losing weight on cancer treatment, ice cream can be an easy way to get more calories in less food, as long as you don't have any sensitivity to cold foods. If you have a sore mouth or throat, ice cream may be one of the few foods that can soothe the discomfort.
2-3 servings of whole grain bread, pastas, rice, etc. every day. Limit fat intake to 30% of calories (preferably less than or equal to 20% of calories) every day. Limit intake of simple sugars.
Take care with cheese bought from farmer's markets and locally produced cheeses. Pasteurised cheeses such as most cheddars, edam, gouda, jarlsberg, emmental, cottage cheese, mozzarella, feta, paneer, ricotta, halloumi processed cheeses such as philadelphia, dairylea and laughing cow.
Conclusion. Honey not only has been shown to have the capability for healing injured tissues but it is also a more economical treatment, and it has fewer side effects compared to synthetic drugs. Honey or honey products can prevent chemotherapy-induced OM (CIOM) and be the best treatment to grade I, II and III CIOM.
Short, planned delays in chemotherapy for good-risk GCT patients (less than or equal to 7 days per cycle) appear to be acceptable since they may prevent serious toxicity in this curable patient population. Delays of longer than 7 days are strongly discouraged except in extraordinary life-threatening circumstances.
The effects of chemo are cumulative. They get worse with each cycle. My doctors warned me: Each infusion will get harder. Each cycle, expect to feel weaker.
Nausea and vomiting can start within the first few hours after chemotherapy drugs are given and usually last about 24 hours. However, nausea and vomiting may start more than 24 hours after treatment and last several days (called delayed nausea and vomiting).
Eating small meals or a snack every three to four hours will help keep your energy level constant. Try 1/4 cup of nuts or seeds, whole grain crackers topped with 2 teaspoons of peanut butter, or 2 tablespoons of hummus as a dip with baby carrots to boost energy. Eat more when you're feeling well. Cut the Caffeine.
Have snacks readily available so that you can eat when you're up to it. Cheese, ice cream, canned fruit in heavy syrup, dried fruit, nuts, peanut butter with crackers, cheese with crackers, muffins, cottage cheese and chocolate milk are examples of high-calorie snacks requiring little or no preparation.