Malnutrition is prevalent among oncology patients and can adversely affect clinical outcomes, prognosis, quality of life, and survival. This review evaluates current trends in the literature and reported evidence around the timing and impact of specific nutrition interventions in oncology patients undergoing active cancer treatment. Previous research studies (published 1 January 2010–1 April 2020) were identified and selected using predefined search strategy and selection criteria. In total, 15 articles met inclusion criteria and 12/15 articles provided an early nutrition intervention. Identified studies examined the impacts of nutrition interventions (nutrition counseling, oral nutrition supplements, or combination of both) on a variety of cancer diagnoses. Nutrition interventions were found to improve body weight and body mass index, nutrition status, protein and energy intake, quality of life, and response to cancer treatments. However, the impacts of nutrition interventions on body composition, functional status, complications, unplanned hospital readmissions, and mortality and survival were inconclusive, mainly due to the limited number of studies evaluating these outcomes. Early nutrition interventions were found to improve health and nutrition outcomes in oncology patients. Future research is needed to further evaluate the impacts of early nutrition interventions on patients’ outcomes and explore the optimal duration and timing of nutrition interventions.

Malnutrition in patients with cancer is a ubiquitous but neglected problem that can reduce patient survival/quality of life and increase treatment interruptions, readmission rates, and healthcare costs. Malnutrition interventions, including nutrition support through dietary counseling, diet fortification, oral nutrition supplements (ONS), and enteral and parenteral nutrition can help improve health outcomes. However, nutritional care standards and interventions for cancer are ambiguous and inconsistently applied. The lack of systematic malnutrition screening and intervention in ambulatory cancer care has especially significant consequences and thus the nutrition support of patients with cancer represents an area for quality improvement. United States healthcare payment models such as the Oncology Care Model are linked to quality of care and health outcomes. Quality improvement programs (QIPs) can advance patient-centered care, perfect care processes, and help healthcare professionals meet their quality measure performance goals. Malnutrition QIPs like the Malnutrition Quality Improvement Initiative (MQii) have been shown to be effective in identifying and treating malnutrition. However, little is known about or has been reported on nutrition or malnutrition-focused QIPs in cancer care. This paper provides information to support translational research on quality improvement and outlines the gaps and potential opportunities for QIPs in the nutrition support of patients with cancer.