Integrative approaches in breast cancer patients: A mini-review

Abstract

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignancy among women worldwide and represents the first cause of death for women aged 35 to 55 years. It has a tremendous impact on patients' physical and psycho-social aspects, affecting their quality of life at any ages.Integrative oncology is a global strategy that incorporates complementary therapies to mainstream care, in order to reduce standard treatment's side effects, potentially enhance their therapeutic effectiveness and improve physical and emotional wellbeing during and after cancer treatment.In developed countries, 40-50% of cancer patients use integrative therapies, including dietary supplements and mind-body therapy techniques.The present paper summarizes the state of the art in clinical and scientific evidences about the main complementary treatments currently used in breast cancer management.

Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer: An Advanced Personalized Multidisciplinary Prehabilitation Model (APMP-M) to Optimize Outcomes

“…After completing the assessment with the "oncological treatment team", every patient is directed to a meeting with the "neoadjuvant supportive care team", which includes a nutritionist, a psycho-oncologist, and an integrative oncology expert (Figure 5) [31]. A lifestyle interview is conducted, and anthropometric parameters and body composition analysis are measured via segmental multi frequency-bioelectrical impedance analysis (SMF-BIA).…”

“…After completing the assessment with the “oncological treatment team”, every patient is directed to a meeting with the “neoadjuvant supportive care team”, which includes a nutritionist, a psycho-oncologist, and an integrative oncology expert ( Figure 5 ) [ 31 ].…”