Cancer patients face many complications that cause nutritional problems, either due to their illness or as side effects of treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation), including:
Loss of Appetite:
As a result of being diagnosed with cancer or the treatment side effects, a child may become prone to losing their appetite and showing no interest in eating, which leads to weight loss, fatigue, weakness, and an inability to continue with treatment. Therefore, parents should monitor their child’s appetite and the amount of food consumed daily, and inform the doctor:
If the child is under one year old and has not eaten for 3 days.
If the child is between 2 and 5 years old and has not eaten for 5 days.
If the child is older than 5 years and has not eaten for 5 days.
Try to make mealtime enjoyable, like eating in front of the TV, while playing, or in the presence of visitors or a friend.
If the child refuses large meals, you can offer small, high-calorie snacks in between, like custard, fruit yogurt, rice pudding with nuts and coconut, ice cream, milk juices, mashed potatoes with milk, and it’s better to rely on multiple small meals rather than just 3 main meals.
If the child likes a particular type of food, there is no harm in repeating it throughout the day.
Let the child help with buying and preparing food as much as possible.
Avoid scolding the child or yelling at them if they don’t eat; instead, try to encourage them and reward them when they do.