Association of Nutritional Status with Quality of Life in Iranian Breast Cancer Survivors

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women. In 2008, 23% (1.38 million) of the total new cancer cases and 14% (458,400) of total cancer deaths among females were associated with breast cancer (Ferlay, 2010; Jemal et al., 2011). While the prevalence of breast cancer has been increased worldwide (Hortobagy et al., 2005; Anderson et al., 2008), the highest incidence has been reported in Asian countries (Green and Raina, 2008). Breast cancer survival rates of women in Asia are approximately half of their Western counterparts (Parkin et al., 2005; Green and Raina, 2008). In Iran, breast cancer is recognized as one of the fastest increasing and the most important women’s health issues (Montazeri et al., 2003). Having a mortality rate of 4 per 100,000, breast cancer is the fifth leading cause of death and the third source of burden in malignant diseases for Iranian women (Akbari et al., 2011). The role of nutrition as a critical part of a healthy lifestyle for cancer survivors is well accepted (Chapman et al., 2011). Cancer alters metabolic and physiological aspects of patients’ nutritional needs for carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals (Vanderbroek and