🌿 Folk Prescriptions

In traditional Chinese medicine, there is a concept called “harmony between man and nature,” meaning climate and natural changes affect human physiology and pathology. Especially during autumn-winter transitions, many cancer patients experience symptom changes—not due to tumor progression, but complications, particularly inflammatory ones. Therefore, during climate shifts, enhancing immune function is crucial for cancer recovery.
Pay Attention to Dietary Regulation
Dietary nutrition is foundational for health maintenance and recovery. “Balanced diet” is a familiar term. The human body is an integrated system requiring all nutrients—no single component should dominate. Especially during cancer recovery, nutrition must be comprehensive—eat everything. For example, a U.S. medical center studied 54 female cervical cancer patients: one group focused on increased nutrition achieved a 97.9% cure rate, while the other group without emphasis had only 70%. Thus, American doctors believe cure rates relate to nutrition. Similarly, West China Medical University First Affiliated Hospital conducted a trial: one group restricted diet, the other did not. Results showed better outcomes in the unrestricted group. Hence, we emphasize eating everything—avoid picky eating.
Nutritional Standards for Cancer Patients
Cancer patient nutritional standards: 1.2–1.5g protein per kg body weight per day (~70–80g); 1g fat per kg body weight per day (~60g); 6g carbohydrates per kg body weight per day (~300g); plus adequate vegetables.
However, adjust based on other conditions. Patients with kidney disease should limit high-protein foods, as excess protein raises creatinine and urea nitrogen. Diabetics should limit high-carbohydrate foods.
How to Obtain Nutrition
Cancer patients should prioritize high-quality protein. You’ve likely heard: “Four legs less than two, two legs less than one, one leg less than none.” Meaning fish proteins are easier to digest and absorb and contain higher levels of unsaturated fats. Though calculating may seem tedious, a simple rule is: one carton of milk + one egg + 50g fish + 50g soy products + 300g rice daily.
Carbohydrates—mainly rice and flour—are staple foods. Cancer patients should consume ~300g (~6 taels) daily. Believing protein is the main nutrient is incorrect—carbohydrates are primary energy sources. When broken down, they produce energy, CO₂ expelled via breathing, and water excreted via urine—completely harmless byproducts. Proteins, however, produce excessive creatinine and urea nitrogen, burdening liver and kidneys. Fats produce ketones—acidic substances—causing ketoacidosis. Thus, sufficient staple foods are essential during recovery.
Ensure Vegetable Intake. Vegetables supply vitamins, trace elements, and dietary fiber—all vital. One patient ate plenty of vegetables post-surgery but still suffered constipation. Upon inquiry, he discovered he drank all vegetables as juice. Is this acceptable? No—because this method lacks dietary fiber.
Vegetables with Anti-Cancer Effects
Many vegetables have strong anti-cancer properties. Listed below:
Mushrooms enhance immunity, prevent cardiovascular disease, lower lipids and blood pressure, protect liver, detoxify, regulate blood sugar, clear free radicals, and delay aging. For example, shiitake mushroom is sweet and neutral, benefiting qi and nourishing deficiency, strengthening spleen and stomach. Used for chronic weakness, poor appetite, hypertension, diabetes, tumors, arteriosclerosis. Research confirms shiitake contains interferon inducers, stimulating endogenous interferon production. It also contains polysaccharides with anticancer effects and nucleic acid-like substances that inhibit cholesterol elevation.
Broccoli prevents cancer, clears and inhibits harmful substances, delays aging, and prevents cardiovascular disease.
Tomatoes contain lycopene—reduces prostate cancer incidence and shrinks lesions.
Autumn-Winter Dietary Principles
What defines autumn-winter transition? First: “Dryness” dominates autumn—autumnal diseases are mostly caused by dry pathogens. Second: “Dryness overpowers moisture,” easily injuring yin and body fluids, causing dryness symptoms. Autumn dryness depletes body fluids; pathogens enter through mouth and nose, affecting the lungs. If not resolved promptly, dryness transforms into fire, damaging lung yin, eventually harming stomach fluid or liver-kidney yin. Third: early cold. Cold is a yin evil, damaging body yang—here, yang includes immune function.
Thus, autumn-winter dietary principles are: nourish lungs with moderate tonification, moisten dryness, generate body fluids. Avoid spicy and greasy, heavy foods. Many foods nourish lungs, moisten dryness, and moderate tonification: apricot kernels, loach, duck meat, shad, yam, taro, silver ear fungus, ginkgo, grapes, lilies, cow’s milk, rock sugar, bee pollen, carrots, radish, black fungus, figs, plum.
Cooling, lung-moistening foods include radish, spinach, malva, luohan guo (monk fruit), sugarcane, water chestnut, winter melon seed, loofah, pear, duck egg, cabbage, mushrooms, pomelo.
Additionally, two Chinese herbs show notable anti-cancer effects: ginseng and lingzhi. Ginseng greatly tonifies primordial qi, strengthens spleen and lungs, generates fluids, quenches thirst, calms the spirit, and alleviates restlessness. Modern research proves it enhances immunity, has anti-cancer effects, improves adaptability to environment, and regulates metabolism and endocrine functions. Lingzhi is sweet in taste, neutral in nature—calms the spirit, tonifies strength, delays aging, protects liver, detoxifies, nourishes heart qi, benefits lung qi. Modern studies confirm it enhances stress resistance, modulates immunity, protects bone marrow, safeguards liver, relieves cough, expels phlegm, eases asthma, strengthens heart, resists myocardial ischemia, inhibits platelet aggregation, and fights cancer.
Recommended Early Winter Tonification Recipes
1. 150g lean pork, 10g lingzhi, 6g astragalus—suitable for qi-blood deficiency or leukopenia after chemotherapy/radiotherapy.
2. 50g red beans, 50g red dates, 15g longan flesh—used for blood deficiency and restless sleep. Caution: may raise blood pressure in yin deficiency with yang hyperactivity; hypertensive patients should use cautiously.
3. 1 whole black-boned chicken, 10g astragalus (replace with duck if chicken not preferred)—for leukopenia after surgery or chemotherapy.
4. 5g raw ginseng, 250g rehydrated sea cucumber—suitable for fatigue and physical weakness.
5. 12g angelica, 100g ginger, 500g lamb—useful for yang deficiency; contraindicated in yin deficiency (e.g., flushed face 3–5 PM, hot palms, night sweats, dry mouth). Suitable for postoperative blood deficiency.
6. 250g fresh mandarin fish, 250g fresh yam slices—used for spleen deficiency with poor appetite and loose stools.
7. 150g lion’s mane mushroom, 250g tender chicken, 10g astragalus (chicken can be substituted if disliked)—for spleen deficiency with poor appetite, shortness of breath, and qi-blood deficiency.
(This article is based on a speech by Professor Yu Erxin, a renowned physician of Shanghai and chief physician at the Fudan University Cancer Hospital, delivered at the “Large-Scale Autumn-Winter Cancer Prevention Campaign” organized by the Shanghai Medical Association and sponsored by Shanghai Lügu Group. The title was added by the journal.)