OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital Launches Nutrition Series for Cancer Survivors
The halls of OhioHealth Mansfield Hospital's Medical Office Building filled with aromas of herbs, fresh peppers, and spiced lentils.
“How's that smelling?” asked Greg Brandes, manager of Nutrition Services at Mansfield Hospital, during his live cooking demonstration.
Many in the audience were not only there for the food and cooking demonstration, but a chance to reclaim their health after going through one of the toughest battles of their lives: cancer.
“We really wanted to pursue classes for cancer survivorship because we know the amount of people surviving cancer is growing and that’s a great thing and we want to celebrate that,” said Sarah Rivenburgh, oncology dietitian at Mansfield Hospital. “But we also know even if you’re a cancer survivor, your risk of cancer recurrence is still there. So, if we can focus on getting people to learn how to eat healthy foods and decrease their risk of cancer recurrence, then we’re doing a good job.”
Every few months, Mansfield Hospital is offering a cancer survivorship nutrition series aimed at supporting people post-cancer treatment with nutrition education.
While the series is tailored for cancer survivors, anyone is welcome, especially caregivers or support partners.
"I will say that I feel like sometimes the cancer diagnosis is much harder on the support person because they’re watching with sadness their person go through this and trying to find things to help them, said Tammy Canfield, wife of a cancer survivor.
For this first series event, attendees learned about protein and how to make smarter food decisions to support their long-term health.
“Your better choices of meat are going to be your poultry,” said Rivenburgh during the class. “Your chicken, your turkey, boneless, skinless preferred…”
Each series will focus on a specific food group, and ultimately, how to apply what you've learned in your own kitchen.
“We really want you to learn things that you’re going to be able to take home and use on a daily basis,” Rivenburgh told class attendees.
This was the first class of the nutrition series for 2026. There will be three more classes throughout the year:
- June 25- focusing on fruits and sweets
- September 17- focusing on vegetables
- November 19- focusing on whole grains
To register for an upcoming event, contact Elisa Bryant, business project manager of oncology services, at 847-712-1597.
