It turns out that the diet after esophageal cancer surgery can be divided into these four stages

As we all know, surgical treatment is very effective for patients with stage I and stage II esophageal cancer, and some may even achieve a radical cure. However, people don’t know much about the diet after esophageal cancer surgery. In fact, the postoperative diet for esophageal cancer is divided into four stages, and the number of days in each stage is different.

Stage 1: About one week after esophageal cancer surgery, the patient is still in the surgical wound healing period, gastrointestinal function has not yet recovered, and digestive function is poor. Generally, during this period, nasogastric feeding is used clinically. The nasogastric feeding diet should contain the appropriate proportions of protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins, salt and water.

The second stage: Seven to ten days after esophageal cancer surgery, the diet will be adjusted to a liquid diet clinically. At this time, you can eat orally, gradually transitioning from drinking a small amount of warm water to drinking rice soup, fish soup, chicken soup, yogurt and nutrient solution, etc. The amount can be gradually increased from 3-4 tablespoons each time to 100-200ML each time, 5-8 times a day.

The third stage: Starting ten days after esophageal cancer surgery, you should gradually transition to a semi-liquid diet. During this period, you should eat small meals frequently, and mainly eat easily digestible and residue-free foods (such as porridge, noodles, tofu, egg custard, etc.). During this period, it is forbidden to eat or drink large amounts of food to avoid complications such as anastomotic fistula.

Stage 4: About one month after esophageal cancer surgery, the diet can be adjusted to a normal diet. During this stage, patients should drink a small amount of water after eating to flush the esophagus and clear food residues in the esophagus. They should still eat small meals frequently for a period of time and engage in appropriate activities after eating. They should not lie down immediately. This will facilitate the digestion and absorption of food and prevent acid reflux, vomiting, etc.

During the recovery period after esophageal cancer surgery, spicy and other irritating foods should be avoided, such as chili peppers, raw onions, ginger, garlic, etc. At the same time, you should also avoid eating moldy, rotten or spoiled food, eat less smoked, roasted and pickled food, and avoid smoking and drinking. In addition, it is emphasized that one should not eat foods that are too hot, too hard, too rough, or difficult to digest. In terms of diet, you can adjust your diet with porridge, such as coix seed porridge, red dates, glutinous rice, lotus seeds, longan and wolfberry porridge, etc. Eat more yogurt, eggs, soy products, etc. Patients with poor appetite can eat fresh hawthorn, fresh pomegranate, or eat orange peel, ginger, etc. with meals to increase their appetite.

In short, diet after esophageal cancer surgery is a very important thing for patients with esophageal cancer. Only by eating a reasonable diet and paying attention to scientific nutritional matching can the patient's quality of life after surgery be improved, the patient's body immunity be enhanced, the patient's physical fitness be strengthened, tumor recurrence be prevented, and the patient's life be prolonged.