Malnutrition and cancer

In relation to cancer, malnutrition needs to be defined comprehensively as the carcinogenic effects produced by nutritional variables through multiple endogenous involvements. Nutritional factors act as primary effectors in four situations: carcinogens in food articles; affected bio-availability of nutrients; non-nutritive dietary items; harmful contaminants. The second situation resulting in malnutrition, often detected by metabolic pathology in high risk groups, is examined. Nutritional carcinogenesis is discussed in relevance to (1) ingestion of toxins; (2) dietary promoters; (3) type, relative proportions, interactions and bioavailability of micronutrients; (4) anti-carcinogenic or protective factors; and (5) the mixed-function oxidases. The etiological role of malnutrition preceding clinical cancer is firmly established. A host of unknown factors presently preclude but do not obliterate association of a specific type of malnutrition to a specific cancer type.