Living with cancer and dementia
It is important for someone with cancer and dementia to look after their general health as much as possible. This can help prevent some problems in the future.
Looking after everyday health
It is important for someone with cancer and dementia to look after their general health as much as possible. This can help prevent some problems in the future and may give them back a feeling of control. You might find these tips useful:
- Help them to take medications as prescribed. You can ask the pharmacist to put their medicines in a pill organiser (dosette box). Pills are placed in individual boxes marked with the day and time to take them.
- Encourage them to have regular check-ups with their GP or practice nurse. If they feel unwell, try to get them to visit the GP promptly.
Help them keep up to date with checks on their hearing, eyesight and teeth, to find any problems early.
Public health experts and cancer specialists have agreed that people living with cancer should receive the coronavirus (covid) vaccine. They may be offered the flu vaccine at the same time. Help them talk to their healthcare team about getting vaccinated. If you are a carer for someone who has cancer, it is important to keep up to date with any vaccines.
Dementia UK has more information about the covid vaccine and people living with dementia.
Eating well and keeping to a healthy weight
It is important for someone with cancer and dementia to try to eat well and maintain a healthy weight.
We have some tips on managing eating problems for people with cancer and dementia. We also have some general information about healthy eating.
Keeping active
Being physically active can be good for the person you care for. It can help improve symptoms:
- tiredness
- a poor appetite
- constipation
- low mood.
It may also reduce stress and help them sleep better.
Check with their GP, cancer doctor or specialist nurse if there are any physical activities the person with cancer and dementia should not do.
Encourage them to start slowly and gradually do more. To begin with, try to reduce the amount of time they spend sitting or lying down. Just moving around the house and doing simple everyday things will help.
If they can manage short walks or gentle stretching exercises, you could help them do this. Younger people with dementia (young onset dementia) may be able to do more physical activity. You could check if there are any exercise classes in their area.
Age UK runs exercise classes in some areas of the UK. It also has physical activity videos to use at home, which you may find helpful.
Alcohol and smoking
People with dementia may enjoy an alcoholic drink sometimes. But they can become more confused after drinking alcohol, so you may need to limit how much they have. They may need help remembering how much they have already had.
It is not advisable to drink alcohol with some medicines. Check with the GP or pharmacist whether it is safe for the person you care for to have alcohol. People whose dementia is linked to drinking too much alcohol in the past are advised not to drink alcohol.
Stopping smoking is the single most important thing someone can do for their health. Smoking can increase the risk of bone thinning (osteoporosis), some cancers and heart disease.
During cancer treatment, stopping smoking may help the treatment work better. It can help the body respond to the treatment and heal more quickly. It may lower the risk of certain cancers coming back after treatment.
Memory problems
Memory problems caused by dementia can be different for each person. Someone who also has cancer may need help remembering treatment plans or ways to manage symptoms. Some treatments have specific advice. For example, you may need to help the person you care for remember if they:
- should not eat certain types of food while on treatment
- need to be careful to avoid infection
- have side effects, such as constipation, so they can let their healthcare team know
- need to take cancer medicines in addition to their usual everyday medicines.
We have a range of easy read cancer information. This can be useful if you want information that is easier to understand.
About our information
This information has been written, revised and edited by Macmillan Cancer Support’s Cancer Information Development team. It has been reviewed by expert medical and health professionals and people living with cancer.
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References
Below is a sample of the sources used in our cancer and dementia information. If you would like more information about the sources we use, please contact us at cancerinformationteam@macmillan.org.uk
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Decision-making and mental capacity. NICE guideline [NG108]. Published 03 October 2018. Available from: www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng108 [accessed June 2023].
Surr CA, Kelly R, Griffiths AW, Ashley L, Cowdell F, Henry A, et al. Enabling people with dementia to access and receive cancer treatment and care: the crucial role of supportive networks. Journal of Geriatric Oncology. 2020;11(7): 1125–1131. Available from: www.doi.org/10.1016/j.jgo.2020.03.015 [accessed July 2023].
Dr Chris Jones
Reviewer
Speciality Registrar in Clinical Oncologist and Clinical Lecturer in Clinical Oncology
Date reviewed
Our cancer information meets the PIF TICK quality mark.
This means it is easy to use, up-to-date and based on the latest evidence. Learn more about how we produce our information.
The language we use
We want everyone affected by cancer to feel our information is written for them.
We want our information to be as clear as possible. To do this, we try to:
- use plain English
- explain medical words
- use short sentences
- use illustrations to explain text
- structure the information clearly
- make sure important points are clear.
We use gender-inclusive language and talk to our readers as ‘you’ so that everyone feels included. Where clinically necessary we use the terms ‘men’ and ‘women’ or ‘male’ and ‘female’. For example, we do so when talking about parts of the body or mentioning statistics or research about who is affected.
You can read more about how we produce our information here.