Modification of Behavioral Habits in Prehabilitation Programs

To review the evidence supporting the modification of behavioral habits and substance use management during cancer treatment and how to implement them as part of a multimodal optimization intervention.

A literature review of the association between cancer and behavioral habits, their impact on oncological treatment outcomes, and substance use management guidelines.

There is an association between harmful habits, such as smoking and alcohol consumption, and cancer. The continuation of poor behavioral habits throughout oncological treatments is associated with poor oncological outcomes and increased complications. Prehabilitation could be an ideal setting to screen, assess, and modify these harmful habits. Prehabilitation programs should be equipped with professionals and resources to help patients achieve harmful habit cessation.

This review puts into manifest the importance of a multidisciplinary approach to substance use management. It can serve as a framework to develop a harmful habit cessation intervention in the context of multimodal prehabilitation to improve surgical and oncological outcomes in the cancer population.