Nutrition Intake and Nutrition Status of Pancreatic Cancer Patients: Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Exercise Intervention Study

Abstract

Pancreatic cancer patients often present with an inadequate nutritional intake. At the same time, there are no standardized recommendations for nutrition intake during and after cancer treatment. In a prospective analysis of a randomized controlled trial analyzing the effects of a 6-month resistance training in pancreatic cancer patients, we assessed the nutritional intake and the impact of a 6-month supervised resistance training or home-based resistance training vs. usual care control on the nutritional intake of the patients. Nutritional intake was assessed by 24-h recall before and after the 6-month resistance training period. At baseline low protein intake (<1 g/kg body weight) was found in 33.9% of the 59 patients and low energy intake (<25 kcal/kg body weight) was found in 39.0% of the patients. In all, 35.6% of the patients were classified with a risk of malnutrition (NRS ≥ 3). In the total of 46 patients who finished the 6-month intervention period, there was no difference in nutritional intake over time between resistance training and usual care control. In conclusion, it appears that the majority of our study population had an adequate protein and energy intake. A resistance training seems to have no influence on the nutritional intake of the patients.

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the patients who participated in this clinical trial.

Author Contributions

Karen Steindorf, Joachim Wiskemann, and Thilo Hackert contributed to conception/design of the SUPPORT-study. Dorothea Clauss, Karen Steindorf, Joachim Wiskemann, Thilo Hackert, and Christine Tjaden contributed to conduction the study. Ingeborg Rötzer and Dorothea Clauss contributed to evaluation of nutrition data. Dorothea Clauss and Karen Steindorf contributed to data analysis. Dorothea Clauss contributed to writing the manuscript. Ingeborg Rötzer and Karen Steindorf contributed to review and editing. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by a grant of the German Cancer Aid (SUPPORT-Study Grant Nos. 110513 and 110552) as well as by additional financial support of the German Cancer Research Center and the University Hospital Heidelberg.