chemo and food
 

We have a friend who will be going through a lot of chemo in the next couple of weeks. I am trying to google some sites to give me some information on foods to make/provide for this family.

if you have been there, done this sort of thing...please pass me your cooking sites or fav ideas.

I really want to fill their freezer.

the people I will be cooking for is a husband/wife team. The wife is the one in therapy.

thank you.

Re: chemo and food
 

That is so nice of you. :hearts Have you asked the family what they like to eat? As far as I know, their regular diet would continue. The wife might prefer bland foods in case the chemo makes her nauseous. :think

Re: chemo and food
 

Learned this in school-

people on chemo need lots of calories, so load them up with preferably healthy calories

they won't necessarily have good appetites so calorie-dense is good

chemo can cause mouth sores, so avoiding spicy foods and crunchy foods could be good until you find out if this will be the case

40% of people who die of cancer actually die not from the cancer but from malnutrition, so keeping her fed may save her life.

Re: chemo and food
 

Thank you SO much! I actually knew nothing, but at least I managed to bump it at a good time. :o

Re: chemo and food
 

:heart So sweet of you! I think what Linda said, google "macrobiotics recipes", soups, comfort foods. veggie lasanga, black bean chili, stuffed green peppers, chicken and yellow rice... asian style foods.

Re: chemo and food
 

mouth sores are a biggie. :yes3 Definitely they don't feel hungry so it should be appetizing food. :tu Things they can 'pick' at. A roast chicken is good. If you're doing soups, I'd go for cream based blended ones, plenty of calories not a lot of work. Go with things they're comfortable with if you can. :heart

Re: chemo and food
 

My mom just finished up a round of chemo, and she said the only thing that tasted good right after the chemo was raspberry tea. I know it's not terribly nutritious, but she said that even water tasted awful (metallic). She couldn't choke anything down except that tea. She didn't realize that she could buy it at the store and was at Sonic every afternoon. So maybe a couple different flavors of drinks to help with water consumption. :shrug3

Re: chemo and food
 

healthy foods, probably bland. Whatever she likes to eat.

Most people tend to gain weight during chemotherapy, surprisingly. I wouldn't make foods any richer than normal.

Re: chemo and food
 

My mom went through chemo several years ago and the only thing she seemed to consistency be able to hold down was GT kombucha. It might be a little far out there for some people, but it was a lifesaver for my mom!

Re: chemo and food
 

thank you so much for all of the great ideas.

her update is that she has stage three breast cancer and will be getting chemo once every three weeks...i don't know if this is the new thing?....

anyway, so, I may make some bland foods...and fill her up with some smoothie items for those days...I read that some may enjoy that?

and then make a few meals for the days after.

I was thinking of some nice one pot dishes that could be frozen and then put in the oven rather easily.

also, does all chemo cause one to loose their hair?
I am considering making her a knitted hat.

Re: chemo and food
 

Yes, chemo will cause her to lose her hair.

I think in a lot of ways it's somewhat like morning sickness in that what sounds good to one person may not sound good to another, and you never know what will do the trick for somebody.

Re: chemo and food
 

This was my Mom's experience. The first week is really bad in the food and drink department. Seems like the metallic taste diminishes quite a bit for the 2nd and 3rd weeks. My mom isn't a big eater as it is, but she was able to eat smaller amounts of her regular meals during the latter weeks.

---------- Post added at 11:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 10:59 PM ----------

Statistics say that only 2% of people doing this sort of chemo won't lose their hair. Apparently the breast cancer chemo is pretty strong.

Re: chemo and food
 

I agree about calorie dense foods but I know there's some conflict about that, so I'd be sure to ask them first. For my dad, my grandma added things like heavy cream to macaroni, so even if he could only eat a bite or two he still got some calories, you know?

Is she doing radiation, too? Sometimes that makes food taste bland.

Re: chemo and food
 

radiation won't be done until later.

she starts with chemo apparently.

surgery is being held off as well.

all I can do is pray and help make some meals so I want to help in the best way possible.

Re: chemo and food
 

My mother liked lots of soup (kinds with pasta or barley, preferably not cream based because it made her feel sicker) and bread. Pastas and rices were also good. You could also include some snacks, like bananas and saltines.

We got sick of lasagna. Everyone sent it.

Also, depending on what kind of chemo she's getting, sometimes the mouth sores can be prevented or lessened by sucking a popsicle (or ice) as she gets the medicine. We used to bring them in a cooler and shared with the whole room. You might want to get some and add a note. I'm pretty sure it was during her AC rounds.