Nutrition Management of Children With Osteosarcoma

Children with cancer are at risk of developing nutrition deficiencies as a result of both disease progression and treatment. Providing timely and appropriate nutrition intervention is paramount to the attainment of positive outcomes, yet guidelines regarding the most effective forms of intervention are lacking. The purpose of this retrospective study was to identify the types of nutrition intervention provided during treatment and to evaluate effectiveness of each. Medical records of patients treated on an established institutional protocol for osteosarcoma between May 1999 and May 2006 were reviewed. Data collected at baseline, weeks 12 and 23, and after completion of treatment included nutrition status, change in nutrition status, type of nutrition support, and number of days on support. In total, 14 of 48 patients (29%) received nutrition support during treatment. Appetite stimulants (dronabinol, cyproheptadine, or megestrol acetate) were the most common type of support used. This form of nutrition intervention seems to be effective in maintaining nutrition status as a sole modality or in combination with parenteral nutrition. Optimizing nutrition interventions by including appetite stimulants may prove to be effective in this population.