Although their primary calling is advancing medical knowledge, Comprehensive Care Center researchers are also focusing on increasing the patients' quality of life during and after treatment.
As a result of studies and clinical trials currently taking place at Duke, cancer patients may see dramatic improvements in their chemotherapy experience. Years from now, unpalatable foods could become a thing of the past, the effectiveness of radiation treatment may be increased and cancers could be removed by specialty drugs that utilize genetic markers.
In the meantime, to address the special needs of chemotherapy patients, Susan Schiffman, professor of medical psychology, is leading a study that will measure taste sensation changes and improve the flavors of some common foods with specially designed enhancers.
"We'll give [the patients] bottles of flavors, show them how to use [the flavors] and then let the patients add them to the food," said Jennifer Zervakis, a research associate in psychology and behavioral science.
Dr. Jennifer Garst, assistant professor of medical oncology, explained that weight loss is among the most serious complications of chemotherapy. To combat this danger, doctors teach their patients about nutrition and the proper ways of maintaining their weight, usually with a diverse diet enriched with nutritional supplements. However, this is often not enough.
"There is something inherent about the chemotherapy treatment. [Patients] don't want to eat," Garst said. "So it's hard for patients to get enough calories." A combination of anti-nausea medicines and drugs that boost appetite, as well as enhance the taste of common foods, should prove beneficial to the patients.
Clinical nurse specialist Linda Hood is conducting a separate study exploring guided imagery's and relaxation's effects on cancer patients.
"Through guided imagery, by using all senses, patients can imagine that they are in a safe, relaxing environment," Hood said.
She sometimes asks patients to imagine they are in their mother's kitchen, slicing a piece of lemon with a knife and then biting into it.
"Their mouths pucker up," Hood said.
Instead of allowing the pain to trigger negative thoughts about their illness, patients can control the situation by focusing on the positive thoughts instead-though they might not be able to play tennis, they can still take a walk or spend time with family.
Fighting pain with positive thoughts is something many have not yet learned to do, substituting other behaviors instead. If these behaviors can be unlearned, Hood believes, patients will benefit.
"It's like going to the dentist," she said. "You can come in with your fists clenched, expecting something painful, but if you learn how to relax, you come out not only with clean teeth, but also feeling better."
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