A new Athenex Oncology guide offers evidence-based lifestyle suggestions to metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patients to help improve their quality of life.
The free booklet, called “Your Guide to Facing Metastatic Breast Cancer,” is touted as a first-of-its-kind resource. Its recommendations include building physical and emotional resilience, maintaining a healthful diet, getting enough sleep, lowering stress levels, and managing inflammation,
Its aim is to improve the quality of life of people with metastatic breast cancer, a breast malignancy that has spread to other parts of the body, most commonly the lungs, liver, bones, or brain.
Timothy Cook, senior vice president, global oncology at Athenex, said the guide underscores the biopharmaceutical company’s commitment to the MBC community. Athenex is currently seeking U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of its new drug application for oral paclitaxel and encequidar for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer.
“Our continued provision of practical resources that promote health and wellness reflects our view of individuals as whole people, not as ‘patients,’” Cook said in a press release. “While the lifestyle tips in the Guide can be useful to anyone, they are designed to be especially helpful to those who are living with metastatic breast cancer.”
The self-care recommendations are based on studies indicating that a healthy lifestyle, which also includes coping mechanisms, may improve breast cancer patients’ overall survival and quality of life. Information from that research has been distilled and translated into simple and easily understandable information that patients can independently incorporate.
“Living with metastatic breast cancer is about more than just taking your medicine and keeping all your doctor’s appointments,” said Beth Baughman DuPree, MD, a surgeon specializing in breast diseases, and a medical adviser to the guide’s development. “It’s about being mindful and taking an active role in your own care, while also finding ways to bring meaning to your life, whether through connecting with friends, creating art, communing with nature, or relieving stress through yoga, tai chi, qigong, reiki, or just plain laughter.”
The guide was created by Viver Health and complements Facing MBC Together, a public education and patient support program Athenex introduced in June to provide practical and emotional support to people living with metastatic breast cancer.
DuPree said the resource was developed to help people who have MBC find their own path to health, wellness, optimism, and inner strength. According to the breast cancer foundation Susan G. Komen, there are more than 168,000 women living with MBC, which men can also develop.
“While the guide was created before the global COVID-19 pandemic struck, its recommendations can be particularly useful during these difficult times, when people with metastatic breast cancer feel even more isolated than usual,” she added.
Go here to order a copy of the guide.