Blog

Arif Kamal: Food is Medicine in Oncology Care Symposium

Arif Kamal/LinkedIn

Dec 24, 2024, 17:39

Arif Kamal: Food is Medicine in Oncology Care Symposium

Arif Kamal shared on LinkedIn:

“Growing up in Missouri, it wasn’t unusual to have breakfast cereals as part of a holiday dinner. Like Rice Krispies, butter, brown sugar as a topping on peach cobbler. Or Corn Flakes on top of hash brown cheese potatoes for the perfect crunch with every bite. You hungry yet?

During the holidays, no matter how or what you celebrate, there’s a good chance that food will be a part of it. Because we eat when we’re happy, and sometimes when we’re sad. We show love with food, and oftentimes use it when it’s hard to know what to say.

And, too little of the right foods, and sometimes too much of the wrong foods, can contribute to cancer.

2025 will be a big year for your American Cancer Society as we further educate the public about these issues and what simple changes you can make — every day to address that risk.

To start that movement, we co-hosted the Food is Medicine in Oncology Symposium in DC alongside our colleagues at Tufts Food and Nutrition Innovation Institute. And after a packed agenda of reviewing the science and hearing from patients and more than 1,000 joining us in-person and virtually, we hosted a Food is Medicine dinner including making our own 4-ingredient salad dressing with vinegar, oil, mustard, seasonings.

Moving from ‘you should’ eat better to ‘this is how’ you make healthy choices. An ethos pivot that defines how we at ACS will show up in 2025.”

Arif Kamal: Food is Medicine in Oncology Care Symposium

Arif Kamal is the first-ever Chief Patient Officer for the American Cancer Society and drives efforts to advance cancer care. With experience at Duke University and the Duke Cancer Institute, he is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Population Health.

He is also a Co-Founder of Prepped Health. Dr. Kamal’s expertise lies in oncology quality assessment, palliative care, and innovative technology solutions for patient engagement.