Study: Individual Counseling Helps Breast Cancer Survivors Lose Weight

A combination of individual weight-loss counseling with the Weight Watchers diet plan helps obese breast cancer survivors lose weight, according to researchers at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit, Michigan.

Researchers wanted to develop an effective weight-loss method for obese women who have had breast cancer, as obesity can complicate their condition.

The study tested an individualized approach toward weight loss in 48 obese women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. The individualized approach was applied either alone or in combination with the Weight Watchers diet program.

The average weight change after one year of intervention was significantly more in the group that had individualized counseling as well as participated in the Weight Watchers plan. Weight loss of 10 percent or more of initial body weight was seen in six of ten women in the combination program after one year.

In the combination and Weight Watchers-only groups, weight loss was significantly related to frequency of attendance at Weight Watchers meetings, and attendance was more frequent in the combination group, according to the study published in the journal Obesity Research.

"These data indicate that the most weight loss was achieved when the counseling approach combined both Weight Watchers and individualized contacts," concluded the researchers. "This was effective even though most of the individualized contacts were by telephone."

Other sources: Obesity Research