DRUG-FOOD

INTERACTIONS IN ANTI-
CANCER THERAPY
Dr dr Marina Indriasari, S.Ked, SpKFR
 Lecture Objectives
1. Know the causes of cancer
2. Knowing clinical symptoms of disease and nutritional status of
cancer patients
3. Identify drug-nutrition interactions that can occur in cancer
 Introduction
● Cancer is a disease caused by the abnormal growth of cells in an organ/tissue
so that the growth of these cells gets out of control and spreads to other
organs/tissues.
● Spread to other organs is called metastasis
● It is the number 2 cause of death in the world
● In countries that have good health systems, the survival rate of cancer patients
is quite good due to several factors, among others: early detection, quality of
treatment, and nutritional status.
 Trigger factor
● Family history
● Age
● Smoke
● Exposure to radiation
● Infected with viruses (HPV, Hepatitis C)
● Long term hormone therapy
● High fat diet
 Type of Cancer
• Carcinoma  Abnormal cells that invade abnormal epithelial cells, namely cells
that line the surface of the skin, blood vessels, urinary tract, and organs.
• Sarcoma  This disease originates from cells that form in the body's soft tissues,
such as muscles, tendons, fat, blood vessels, nerves, and tissue around joints.
• Lymphoma  Lymphoma is a cancer cell that occurs in T cells or B cells, namely
white blood cells that are part of the immune system.
• Leukemia Abnormal cells that originate in the blood-forming tissues of the bone
marrow.
• Multiple myeloma  Disease multiple myeloma that originates in plasma cells,
another type of immune cell.
• Melanoma  Melanoma is what occurs in melanocyte cells, which are cells that
make melanin (the substance that gives skin color).
• Brain and spinal cancer  Abnormal cells that form in the central nervous system.
 Nutritional Status and Cancer

Based on its association with cancer, nutritional status is divided into three
characteristics, namely
● Causing Cancer (causing),
● Promoting Cancer (accelerate onset), and
● Protective Cancer (lighten).
Attention to nutritional status and support from the environment is expected to
increase the success of treatment therapy.
Drug-food interactions in cancer therapy need to be studied in order to balance
nutrition --> prevent weight loss --> prevent secondary infection.
Cancer clinical manifestations
Cancer symptoms are related to the organs affected.
Some of the symptoms that are often encountered are:
● A lump appears.
● Pain in one part of the body.
● Pale, limp, and tired quickly.
● Drastic Weight Loss
● Impaired defecation or defecation
● Chronic cough
● Recurring fever.
● Bruising and bleeding spontaneously.
 Nutritional status in cancer patients
• Most cancer patients experience drastic weight loss in a short
period of time
• Potential to experience a lack of calories and protein which is
associated with the growth of cancer cells
• • . Low nutritional status triggers the emergence of various
infectious diseases
• The main causes of weight loss in cancer patients are:
decreased intake, increased body metabolism, side effects of
treatment (nausea, vomiting), and inadequate nutritional intake
Cancer Treatment
● In tumor cells that have not metastasized, interventions such as surgery and radiotherapy
● If you have experienced metastases, anticancer treatment is needed in the form of
chemotherapy
● Bone marrow transplant
● Immunotherapy
● The selected anticancer is expected to have selective toxicity, not damaging other normal
cells/tissues of the body
● In general, anticancer has non-selective toxicity in normal tissues that proliferate rapidly,
for example in bone marrow, mucosa, hair, and blood.
● Treatment given to cancer patients is usually in the form of combination therapy to prevent
greater effects on normal tissue
 Commonly used anticancer drugs
Class Function Example
Alkilator Alkyl binders and Chlorambucil,
nucleoproteins cyclophosphamide,
busulfan, carmustine
Antimetabolit Reducing nutrients for cell life Fluorourasil, sitarabin,
metotrexate
Hormonal Reducing cell development Dietilestradiol,
testosteron
Antibiotik Binds to DNA so that DNA Bleomisin, antrasiklin,
function is disrupted daktinomisin
Alkaloid Binds specifically to tubulin, a Vinblastin, vinkristin
microtubule protein, so the
cell stops metastasizing
 Impact of cancer therapy

1. Originally normal body cells, can also be damaged

2. Gastrointestinal disorders: Diarrhoea, constipation, malabsorption
3. Decreased muscle mass (weight loss)
4. Nausea, vomiting, lack of smell
5. Malnutrition
 Drug-Food Interactions
● Drug-food interactions include the effect of nutritional status and the effect of drugs on
nutritional status, as well as the effect of certain foods or nutrients on concomitant
administration with drugs.
● In cancer patients, there are very few reports that specifically focus on food-drug
interactions and their impact on populations.
● The clinical significance of drug-food interactions in cancer therapy is highly dependent
on: individual conditions, stage of cancer, age and type of treatment.
TERIMAKASI
H