Avaliação antropométrica e sintomas gastrointestinais de pacientes em tratamento oncológico em uma cidade do interior de São Paulo

Abstract

Introduction: Cancer and its treatment modalities have a negative impact on the nutritional status of patients. The purpose of this study is to evaluate anthropometric measurements and the presence of gastrointestinal symptoms in patients undergoing cancer treatment. Methods: This is a study carried out with 50 patients over 18 years of age undergoing cancer treatment. For anthropometric assessment, weight and height measurements were performed to calculate the body mass index (BMI) and the measurements of the adductor pollicis muscle thickness (APMT), arm (AC) and calf (CC) circumference, in addition to the triceps skin fold (TSF). Gastrointestinal symptoms were questioned in an interview. Results: Most participants were female (72%), aged 60 years or over. According to the BMI, 46% of the patients were overweight. The lowest mean BMI was found in individuals with colon and rectal neoplasia (23.2 ± 3.9 kg/m²) and this measure was correlated to the other anthropometric measures: AC (r = 0.84; p = 0.001); CC (r = 0.75; p = 0.009) and TSF (r = 0.72; p = 0.012). APMT revealed 92% of inadequacy, while AC and CC measurements indicated 40% and 24% of inadequacy, respectively. The most prevalent gastrointestinal symptoms were: hyporexia, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and constipation. Conclusion: The present study identified a high prevalence of nutritional risk, characterized by excess weight and muscle depletion, in patients undergoing cancer treatment. Patients with colorectal cancer had their nutritional status even more impaired and a higher frequency of gastrointestinal symptoms.