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“We’re Just Not Prepared for Eating Over Our Whole Life”: A Mixed Methods Approach to Understanding Dietary Behaviors Among Longer Term Cancer Survivors
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

“We’re Just Not Prepared for Eating Over Our Whole Life”: A Mixed Methods Approach to Understanding Dietary Behaviors Among Longer Term Cancer Survivors

Ann Carroll Klassen, Katherine Clegg Smith, Michelle Shuster, Kisha I. Coa, Laura E. Caulfield, Kathy J. Helzlsouer, Kimberly S. Peairs, Lillie D. Shockney, Dara Stoney and Susan Hannum
Integrative cancer therapies, v 17(2), pp 350-362
03 Oct 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735417731515
PMID: 28971702
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735417731515View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)CC BY-NC V4.0,  Open

Abstract

cancer survivorship clinician behavior dietary assessment mixed methods nutrition education
Background: In many countries, there are growing numbers of persons living with a prior diagnosis of cancer, due to the aging population and more successful strategies for treatment. There is also growing evidence of the importance of healthful diet and weight management for survivorship, yet many long-term cancer survivors are not successfully following recommendations. Methods: We explored this issue in a mixed methods study with 53 adult survivors of 3 cancers (breast, prostate, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma), living in Maryland. Participants provided three 24-hour dietary recalls, and results were used to classify respondents on 2 metrics of healthful eating (the Healthy Eating Index 2010, and a 9-item index based on current dietary recommendations). Recalls were also used to guide in-depth qualitative discussions with participants regarding self-assessment of dietary behaviors, healthful eating, and diet’s importance in cancer prevention and survivorship. Results: Survivors following a more healthful diet were more likely to be female, have greater socioeconomic resources, more years since diagnosis, normal weight, and no smoking history. Qualitative discussions revealed a more nuanced understanding of dietary strategies among healthful eaters, as well as the importance of household members in dietary decision making. Discussion: Most survivors had received little nutrition counseling as part of their cancer care, highlighting the importance of holistic, household-oriented nutrition education for maintaining health among long-term cancer survivors.

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6 Record Views
9 citations in Web of Science
10 citations in Scopus

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UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

This publication has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:

#3 Good Health and Well-Being

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Integrative & Complementary Medicine
Oncology
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