Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 6, 2025

Assessment of the Metabolic Effects of Isocaloric 2:1 Intermittent Fasting in Mice
Published on: November 27, 2019
Impact of Fasting on Patients With Cancer: An Integrative Review
Samantha Thompson1, Lydia T Madsen1, Angela Bazzell1
1From Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas.
Background:
Patients with cancer often pursue nutrition as an avenue to positively impact their care management and disease outcomes. Nutritional interventions are increasing in popularity, especially intermittent fasting as an adjunct to chemotherapy. However, limited research is available on the impact of intermittent fasting on patients with cancer.
Methods:
A comprehensive literature search was conducted using Ovid MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, and CINAHL databases.
Results:
514 articles were identified from the three databases. Seven studies remained after applying inclusion and exclusion criteria. The seven studies included in this review examined fasting compliance, malnutrition, therapy side effects, endocrine parameters, quality of life measures, and cancer outcomes. Data suggest overall good compliance, no malnutrition, minimal side effects, a trend toward improved endocrine parameters, unchanged quality of life (QOL), and mixed results for cancer outcomes.
Conclusion:
Intermittent fasting as an adjunct to chemotherapy in normal-weight patients with cancer has potential as a safe, tolerable, and feasible nutritional intervention that could positively impact treatment outcomes and QOL. Large-scale randomized controlled trials are needed to validate these findings and determine what future role intermittent fasting may play in cancer management.
Related Concept Videos
Cancer Therapies
However, cancer treatments can pose several challenges, as therapies used to kill cancer cells are generally also toxic to normal cells. Moreover, cancer cells mutate rapidly and can develop resistance to chemical agents or radiation therapy. Besides, all types of cancer cells may not respond to the same therapy. Some cancer cells respond to one...
Metabolic States of the Body: Fasting and Starvation
Psychoneuroimmunology: Diabetes and Cancer
Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
Cancer Prevention
Some...
Cancer Survival Analysis

