Nutritional therapy for cancer cachexia

In cancers where high inflammatory stress is usual, protein rich supplements containing n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and high levels of antioxidant vitamins can reverse severe weight loss T he process of inflammation has a paradoxical effect. This is mostly due to the metabolic responses triggered by the release of the three proinflammatory cytokines, interleukin 1b (IL-1b), tumour necrosis factor a (TNF-a), and interleukin 6 (IL-6). As an integral part of the body’s response to infection and injury, these mediators release substrate, from host tissues, to support T and B lymphocyte activity,