What To Eat When You Have Merkel Cell Carcinoma?

Merkel Cell Carcinoma or MCC is an aggressive and rare type of skin cancer, which remains at a higher risk related to spreading and recurring throughout our body. Here, a majority of recurrences take place within a period of only 2 years post-diagnosis of the underlying tumor.

The formation of a painless and fast-growing tumor or nodule on the skin is the first symptom associated with Merkel Cell Carcinoma. The nodule, in this case, maybe of skin color or may appear in varying shades, such as shades of blue, red and purple. Patients of Merkel Cell Carcinomas often have nodules or tumors on their neck, head and face, while in some cases, nodules may develop in almost every body part, even in those areas not exposed to the ultraviolet light of the sun.

Foods Rich In Beta Carotene

You should include foods rich in beta carotene in your daily diet. For this, you should search for orange or yellow colored fruits and veggies, such as squash, carrots, cantaloupe, sweet potatoes, mangoes, and apricots. The main role of beta carotene nutrient is to convert itself to vitamin A in your body to give you specific health benefits, along with reducing your risks related to Merkel Cell Carcinoma.⁽¹⁾

Foods Rich In Selenium

You should indulge a habit of having two to three Brazilian nuts in a day to fulfill the requirement to intake selenium. In addition, you may have grass-fed beef and chicken to avail the benefits of selenium and in turn, manage your MCC problem.

Foods Rich In Omega-3 Fatty Acids

Omega-3 fatty acids are special nutrients, which inhibit COX-2 i.e. a chemical to help you in managing your skin cancer and simultaneously to reduce the inflammation. If you want to avoid inflammation associated with Merkel Cell Carcinoma, you should intake food items rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. These are fatty fishes, like sardines, salmon, herring, mackerel, and albacore tuna and similar others. Alternatively, you may find Omega-3 fatty acids in a few of the vegetable sources, such as flaxseeds and walnuts.

Foods Rich In Lycopene

Next, you should try food items rich in a red pigment called lycopene. These include watermelon, tomatoes, papaya, guava, blood oranges, pink grapefruit and similar other types of foods. Red pigment possessed by lycopene is not only helpful in protecting tomatoes against causing sun damages but also safeguards our skin against all sorts of skin damages.

Foods Rich In Vitamin C

You should include food items rich in Vitamin C in your diet to reduce your chances related to causing Merkel Cell Carcinoma or at least to prevent MCC-related death. Positively, you may get vitamin C from different food sources, which include limes, lemons, oranges, raspberries, strawberries and certain types of vegetables, like bell peppers, broccoli, and leafy greens.⁽¹⁾

Foods Rich In Vitamin E

Vitamin E comes with multiple abilities to make any type of skin cancer, including Merkel Cell Carcinoma a preventive one. As one of the effective antioxidants, vitamin E rich foods help you in preventing damages from various free radicals; absorbing energy from the ultraviolet light, while has potent anti-inflammatory effects. In addition, vitamin E supplements and food items boost the ability of your veins and skin to perform their functions as protective barriers. You may easily find vitamin E in different food items, which include nuts and almonds, seeds of sunflower, soybeans, spinach, and wheat germ.

Foods Rich In Zinc Supplements:

Foods containing zinc supplements make sure about the efficient functioning of your immune system to fight with MCC and other similar types of cancer diseases. Even zinc activates specific types of antioxidants in your body along with this, zinc supplements are responsible for enhancing the proteins levels associated with the repair of DNA and avoid related DNA damages, which result in cancers. Positively, you may find zinc supplements in shellfish, lamb, beef and certain types of legumes, like chickpeas, hummus, black beans, and lentils.⁽¹⁾

References:

https://www.skincancer.org/prevention/can-your-diet-help-prevent-skin-cancer

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What To Eat When You Have Merkel Cell Carcinoma?