2021 Volume 3 Issue 1 Pages 2-10
Objective: The nutritionDay project was started in Europe in 2006, and since 2012, surveys specific to cancer patients have also been conducted. Here, we report on the current status of cancer patients in Japan and overseas based on the national reports published from 2015 to 2017.
Method: During this 3-year period, 748 cancer patients in Japan and 4,630 cancer patients overseas were enrolled. The average age was 71.3 years in Japan and 65.4 years overseas, and mean BMI was 21.6 and 24.1, respectively.
Results: The proportion of inpatients with terminal cancer was higher in Japan at 13.4% than overseas at 4.8%. The proportion of patients who received parenteral nutrition was 18.0% and just 10.9%, respectively. Conversely, the proportion of Japanese patients who received energy-rich/protein-rich oral nutritional supplements was just 3.9%, compared with 14.4% of their overseas counterparts.
Conclusion: The results published in the nutritionDay national reports make it possible to objectively evaluate the current status of cancer patients and nutritional therapies in Japan and to provide basic data for improving nutritional therapy into the future.
