Evaluation of Nutritional Status of Patients with Malignancy in an Outpatient Radiation Oncology Clinic in Mashhad

Malnutrition caused by cancer and its treatments reduces quality of life in patients and worsens disease prognosis. However, nutritional care can improve complications. There are few studies about cancer malnutrition prevalence in Iran. The aim of this study was to assess the risk of malnutrition in patients with cancer in a referring oncology center. A cross-sectional Audit study was conducted with the participation of all patients aged above 18 years old who referred for the first time to Reza Radiation Oncology Center (RROC) on May 2012. Overall166 patients completed the study. Nutritional status was evaluated based on MUST (Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool). According to MUST evaluation, 48.8% of patients were at low risk and 38.5% of them were at high risk of malnutrition. This study showed the significant correlation between malnutrition and cancer type. The majority of high risk malnourished patients were in lower GI, brain and upper GI cancer patients respectively. The most common type of cancer was breast cancer, which had the lowest risk of malnutrition. This study showed a considerable risk of malnutrition in cancer patients in Mashhad, Iran. Thus, medical nutritional intervention based on malignancy type is of essential importance.