Moffitt Cancer Center Offers Healthy Tips To Kick Off 2011

December 17, 2010

TAMPA, Fla.—Moffitt Cancer Centeris ready to help you ring in a healthy and happy new year. Don’t let your holiday smorgasbord inflate your waistline. Instead aim to fuel your body until you are 80 percent, rather than 110 percent, full at every meal or snack, says registered dietitian Kathryn Allen, director of Nutrition at Moffitt. “There are no bad foods, only bad habits.”

Allen coordinates Moffitt’s Recovery with Exercise, Nutrition, Education and Weight management program (R.E.N.E.W.) geared toward cancer survivors who have finished treatment. It’s a 12-week course that includes three one-on-one sessions with a registered dietitian and 12 group sessions on nutrition and exercise to reduce your risk of cancer. The next group begins Jan. 12, and classes are from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays. The cost is $180. Call (813) 745-6889.

Allen also offers these nutrition tips:

Plan ahead for simple lunches and snacks at work. Healthy options include a can of chicken or tuna, turkey sandwich or wrap, microwaveable soups, small portions of nuts, yogurt, low-fat microwave popcorn, whole-grain crackers, sliced cucumbers, baby carrots, apples, bananas and grapes.
Commit to preparing meals at home more often than dining out. You can save money while having fun with the family.
Go with seasonal fruits and vegetables. They are usually better quality and less expensive.
Schedule physical activity into your week just like you would an appointment. Make time for you!

The American Cancer Society estimates that 46 million adults smoke cigarettes. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States for men and women. Quitting smoking lowers your risk of lung cancer, other cancers, heart attack, stroke and chronic lung diseases.

If you need help quitting, Moffitt’s Tobacco Research & Intervention Program offers these tips:

Set a target date for quitting.
List all the reasons you want to quit, as well as their benefits.
Consider using a nicotine replacement product to reduce urges and nicotine withdrawal symptoms.
Use relaxation techniques to help relieve the urge to smoke. Take a deep breath, hold it for a second and then release it very slowly.
Moffitt has a smoking cessation clinic. Call (813) 745-1751.

Moffitt is recruiting smokers for a $2.8 million quit-smoking study funded by the National Cancer Institute. “Project Quit” will compare various smoking-cessation booklets to determine how well they actually help people quit smoking and then stay tobacco free,” said Thomas Brandon, Ph.D., director of TRIP. To participate, call 1-877-954-2548.

The best way to beat cancer is to prevent it or catch it early. Moffitt offers a wide range of cancer screening options at Lifetime Cancer Screening & Prevention Center. State-of-the-art services include digital screening mammograms, as well as comprehensive screening examinations for men and women. Women’s Comprehensive Cancer Screenings include examination of the breasts, thyroid, mouth, skin, lymph nodes, cervix and ovaries. Men’s Comprehensive Cancer Screenings include the prostate, thyroid, mouth, skin, lymph nodes and testes. Appointments can also be made for skin cancer screenings and colonoscopies.

For individuals with a strong personal or family history of cancer, Lifetime provides face-to-face genetic counseling services to assess your risk of a hereditary cancer syndrome and recommend genetic testing if appropriate. Enhanced surveillance (more frequent monitoring or additional routine testing through methods such as breast MRI) is offered to patients that are found to be at increased risk for developing cancer.

Moffitt researchers are working to identify which lifestyle factors, genetic predispositions and molecular changes lead to the development of cancer. This understanding will enable doctors to better predict an individual’s cancer risk, discover interventions to reduce risk, and design new tests to detect cancer at an early stage.

To make an appointment or learn more about cancer screening at Lifetime, call (813) 745-6769.

About Moffitt Cancer Center

Located in Tampa, Florida, Moffitt Cancer Center is an NCI Comprehensive Cancer Center - a designation that recognizes Moffitt’s excellence in research and contributions to clinical trials, prevention and cancer control. Moffitt currently has 14 affiliates in Florida, one in Georgia and two in Puerto Rico. Additionally, Moffitt is a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network, a prestigious alliance of the country’s leading cancer centers, and is listed in U.S. News & World Report as one of “America’s Best Hospitals” for cancer. Moffitt’s sole mission is to contribute to the prevention and cure of cancer.

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