Effectiveness of nutritional interventions in controlling and treatment of malnutrition in children with common cancers

Malnutrition is one of the most important factors affecting the treatment process of children with cancer. The objective of the present study was to determine the effectiveness of nutritional interventions in controlling and treatment of malnutrition in children with common cancers.

The current study is a retrospective cohort study that was conducted in the Hematology and Oncology Department of Mofid Children's Hospital. All included patients were children aged <18 years with leukemia, lymphoma, and neuroblastoma. Sampling was done in a non-random way. Nutritional evaluation of patients included measuring weight, height, arm circumference and calculating body mass index performed by a pediatrician. The percentage and Z-score of weight for height and in 2 year old children and older, the percentage and Z-score of body mass index were calculated. Based on the obtained results, the severity of malnutrition was determined.

A total of 96 children with common childhood cancers were studied. The results revealed that weight changes were not significant among sexual groups. Moreover, there was no significant difference in height between children with different cancers. Based on the diagram 2, a decrease in the BMI of children with nephroblastoma, neuroblastoma, and lymphoma was observed in the third period. The results showed that there was no significant difference in BMI based on gender and in different time periods. In the Z score diagram by gender, there was no significant difference between boys and girls, while in the tenth time period, unlike boys, a sharp decrease was observed in girls..

The results showed that in most of the investigated indicators, the nutritional status in the diagnosis of cancer in the age group of children was in the normal range. However, long-term and continuous follow-up of the patients with malignancy is necessary to determine the effect of their nutritional status on diagnosis and treatment process.