Integrative Oncology Nutrition
Personalised, evidence-informed nutrition support designed around your cancer diagnosis, treatment, symptoms, pathology and individual health needs.
Whether you're preparing for treatment, currently undergoing treatment or navigating life after cancer, nutrition can play an important role in maintaining strength, managing treatment-related effects and supporting your longer-term health.
What Is Integrative Oncology Nutrition?
Nutrition that works alongside your cancer care
Cancer can change your nutritional needs considerably.
Treatment may affect appetite, digestion, body weight, muscle mass, energy, bone health, metabolic health and nutrient status. At the same time, many people are confronted with conflicting information about what they should eat, foods they should avoid and supplements they should take.
Integrative oncology nutrition uses evidence-informed nutrition and lifestyle strategies alongside, never instead of, conventional cancer treatment.
My role is to help you understand what is relevant to your situation and develop a practical nutrition strategy that complements your medical care.
Three Stages of Care
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Before Treatment
Build nutritional resilience and prepare for what's ahead.
Before treatment begins, nutrition support can help identify nutritional risks, address deficiencies where appropriate, optimise protein and energy intake, and establish practical strategies to support you through treatment.
This is also an opportunity to review supplements and consider potential interactions before chemotherapy, radiation, surgery or other treatments begin.
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During Treatment
Support your nutritional status, strength and treatment tolerance.
During treatment, priorities may shift depending on your symptoms and treatment plan. Nutrition support may focus on maintaining weight and muscle, meeting protein and energy requirements, managing gastrointestinal symptoms or changes in appetite and taste, maintaining hydration, and ensuring supplements are appropriate and safe.
Recommendations are adapted as your treatment and symptoms change.
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After Treatment
Rebuild, recover and support your long-term health.
After active treatment, the focus can move towards recovery and the health issues that matter over the years ahead.
This may include rebuilding strength and muscle, improving body composition, supporting metabolic, cardiovascular and bone health, addressing menopausal or treatment-related changes, improving diet quality and developing sustainable nutrition and lifestyle habits.
The aim is to help you move beyond simply finishing treatment towards feeling confident about how to support your health for the future.
What My Approach Looks Like
Personalised nutrition, not a cancer diet
There is no single diet that is right for every person with cancer.
Your nutritional needs can differ depending on your cancer type, treatment, medications, symptoms, pathology, body composition, medical history and stage of care.
Rather than applying a restrictive ‘cancer diet’, I consider the bigger clinical picture.
Your assessment may consider:
Your cancer treatment
Current and previous treatments, medications and anticipated side effects.
Your diet
What you currently eat, your nutritional requirements and where meaningful changes may help.
Your pathology
Relevant blood results and nutritional or metabolic markers.
Your symptoms
Including appetite, digestion, fatigue, bowel changes and treatment-related effects.
Your supplements
Whether they are necessary, appropriately dosed and compatible with your treatment.
Your longer-term health
Including cardiovascular, metabolic, bone, brain and muscle health.
Supplement Safety
Supplements during cancer treatment require particular care
It's understandable to want to do everything possible to support your body during cancer treatment.
But more isn't necessarily better.
Some nutritional supplements and herbal medicines can interact with cancer medications, affect drug metabolism or be inappropriate at particular stages of treatment.
Others may be useful when there is a clear clinical indication.
My approach is to consider:
why you're taking it
available evidence
dose
duration
treatment timing
potential medication interactions
your pathology and nutritional status
Food remains the foundation. Supplements are used strategically where there is a clear rationale.
Collaborative Care
Designed to complement your medical treatment
Integrative oncology should be integrated.
With your consent, I communicate with your oncologist, GP and other healthcare practitioners where appropriate.
This is particularly important when recommendations involve supplements, significant nutritional concerns, pathology abnormalities or symptoms that require medical review.
My role is not to replace your oncology team, but to provide specialised nutritional care that complements the treatment you're receiving.
About Lisa
Oncology nutrition informed by clinical practice and research
Lisa Hanlon is a degree-qualified Clinical Nutritionist with advanced training in integrative oncology.
Her clinical focus includes nutrition during cancer treatment and cancer survivorship, with a particular interest in the metabolic and longer-term health challenges that can emerge following treatment.
Lisa's Master of Research at Western Sydney University explored GP perspectives on preventing and managing weight gain following breast cancer, with a particular focus on improving survivorship care and coordination.
Her approach combines clinical nutrition, pathology interpretation and current research with practical recommendations designed for real life.
Work With Me
Personalised support throughout your cancer journey
Your nutrition needs can change considerably from diagnosis and treatment through to recovery and longer-term survivorship.
For people looking for ongoing support, I work with a limited number of private oncology clients through personalised programs designed to evolve alongside your treatment, symptoms, pathology and changing health priorities.
Most clients benefit from working together for 3–6 months, depending on where they are in their cancer journey and what they would like to achieve.
Prefer a single appointment rather than ongoing support?
Frequently Asked Questions
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No.
Integrative oncology uses evidence-informed complementary approaches alongside conventional cancer treatment.
Alternative therapies are used instead of conventional medical treatment. I do not provide or recommend alternative cancer treatment.
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Some can.
Supplements, herbal medicines and high-dose nutrients may interact with particular cancer treatments or medications, which is why they should be assessed individually.
What is appropriate depends on the treatment, dose, timing, nutritional status and reason for taking the supplement.
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Yes.
Your oncology team should know about supplements and herbal medicines you're taking.
With your permission, I can also communicate with your oncologist or GP about nutritional recommendations where appropriate.
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Food is the foundation of my approach.
Targeted supplementation may be appropriate where there is a nutritional deficiency, increased requirement or other clear clinical indication.
My preference is to use supplements strategically rather than prescribing large numbers of products without a clear rationale.
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There isn't one diet that suits everyone undergoing cancer treatment.
Your priorities may depend on your treatment, symptoms, appetite, weight and nutritional status.
For some people, maintaining weight and getting enough protein and energy is the priority. For others, metabolic health or managing treatment-related symptoms may require greater attention.
Check out my Webinar: Nutrition During And After Cancer Treatment →
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Yes.
Cancer survivorship is a major focus of my practice.
Nutrition after treatment may focus on weight, metabolic and cardiovascular health, bone health, brain health, maintaining muscle, gut health and establishing a sustainable dietary pattern for long-term health.
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Yes.
With your consent, I can communicate with your treating practitioners where clinically appropriate so that your nutritional care remains coordinated with your medical treatment.
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Consultations are available in clinic in Parramatta and via telehealth Australia-wide.
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Nutrition strategies may help manage some treatment-related concerns such as reduced appetite, nausea, taste changes, digestive symptoms, unintended weight loss, hydration and difficulty meeting protein or energy needs.
Recommendations need to be individualised to your treatment, symptoms and nutritional status, and nutrition support should complement the care provided by your oncology team.
Confused about Nutrition After a Cancer Diagnosis?
You don't have to navigate conflicting advice about food and supplements on your own.
Whether you're preparing for treatment, currently undergoing treatment or looking ahead to life after cancer, personalised nutrition support can help you understand what matters for your health and where to focus.
Looking for comprehensive, ongoing support?
Prefer an individual consultation?
