Cancer prevention for cancer survivors

WCRF UK recommends that after treatment, cancer survivors should follow the recommendations for cancer prevention.

Anyone who has received a diagnosis of cancer should receive specialist nutritional advice from an appropriately trained professional. Once treatment has been completed, if you are able to do so (and unless otherwise advised), aim to follow WCRF UK’s Recommendations for Cancer Prevention.

Cancer survivors – the evidence

While there have been great steps forward in the last 20 years about what increases and reduces the risk of cancer, there has been a lack of quality research into how to prevent it recurring.

There is some evidence that, particularly with breast cancer, cancer survivors can reduce their risk of it recurring by eating healthily and maintaining a healthy weight.

But there is not yet enough evidence to make any specific recommendations for cancer survivors as a whole, or for those who are survivors of any specific form of cancer.

WCRF UK and future cancer survivors research

WCRF UK believes that because there is not enough evidence about how to prevent cancer recurring, cancer survivors do not have access to the same quality lifestyle advice as everyone else.

Because of this, we have identified cancer survivorship as a key research priority for the scientific work we fund. An example of this is that we are funding a study in Cambridge that is trying to find out how breast cancer patients can stop the disease recurring.

We also try to encourage other organisations that fund cancer research to fund studies that can help us give better advice to cancer survivors than what is available at the moment.

If you want more information on preventing cancer recurring, download our publication for cancer survivors.

Find out about our other Recommendations for Cancer Prevention

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