Can a healthy diet and exercise reverse cancer?

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A healthy diet and regular exercise are the bases of well-being but highly affect people going through cancer. Lifestyle choices build the immune system, lessen inflammation, boost energy levels, and maintain mental health. But, while being paramount to a holistic view of health, it is essential to note limitations in terms of cancer.
According to Dr. Bhavna Bansal Senior Consultant and HOD, Histopathology Oncquest Laboratories, “Cancer is a disease with multiple causes, including genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. Although intake of high fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins, accompanied by regular physical activity, may prevent or reduce the risk of developing certain cancers, it does not reverse cancers once developed. That is why achieving effective cancer treatment through medical procedures, such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or immunotherapy, is essential.”

It is wrong to say that diet and exercise cannot significantly improve these treatments. If not treating the cancer, proper nutrition would lessen the severity of treatment side effects, including fatigue and nausea; physical activity would enhance strength, lessen stress, and contribute to a better quality of life. Healthy living can also prevent recurrences in some cancer survivors by promoting ideal body weight and lowering inflammation.

According to a study by the National Library of Medicine, food and lifestyle changes alone can prevent 30–40% of all malignancies. Excess cancer risk is influenced by a number of factors, including red meat consumption, low fiber intake, nutrient-poor meals such as concentrated sweets and refined wheat products that impair glucose metabolism (causing diabetes), and an imbalance between omega 3 and omega 6 fats. Consuming large amounts of fruits and vegetables and flax seed, particularly its lignan fraction, will reduce the risk of cancer. Cruciferous vegetables and allium are particularly advantageous; the densest source of sulforophane is broccoli sprouts.

A diet that follows these recommendations is likely to reduce malignancies at other locations by a similar amount, with breast, colorectal, and prostate cancers likely to drop by at least 60–70% and lung cancer by as much as 40–50%. A diet of this kind would help prevent cancer and promote cancer recovery as well.
Moreover, there is a need for balanced care and evidence-based medical treatments with supportive lifestyle modification. Proactive and well-applied measures can make cancer management effective in detecting and intervening in the disease. Not cures, but diet and exercise can empower anyone to be proactive about their health and develop resilience during and after treatment.