A Faculty of Medicine cancer prevention researcher is studying whether cooking classes can help men with prostate cancer can stave off the negative side effects of treatment.
The participants are undergoing androgen deprivation therapy, a treatment that often affects bone health, and leads to weight gain, hot flashes and fatigue. Good nutrition and physical activity can prevent some of these effects.
The study enlists both the men undergoing treatment and their partners, teaching them to use labels in choosing healthier foods, new ways of using familiar ingredients and the importance of physical activity. The results will determine whether the program should be tested in a larger group and whether it may eventually be incorporated as part of standard care.
This project was one of 46 studies recently funded in the Canadian Cancer Society’s Innovation Grant program, which supports innovative, creative problem-solving in cancer research.
“It’s really rewarding people for thinking outside the box,” says study leader Carolyn Gotay, Professor and Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) Chair in Cancer Primary Prevention in the Faculty’s School of Population and Public Health.