Colon Cancer Survivors Live Longer With Healthy Habits

[Guest Nicole]

There's a straightforward way to live longer after being diagnosed with advanced cancer and it doesn't involve chemotherapy or surgery. It's just eating right and exercising more, doctors reported Wednesday.

Cancer survivors who followed standard American Cancer Society guidelines for healthy living were 42 percent less likely to die than similar survivors who didn't, researchers found.

"We found that patients who maintain a healthy body weight, engage in regular physical activity, and eat a diet rich in vegetables and whole grains and low in red meats and processed meats did better and survived longer than those who didn't," said Dr. Erin Van Blarigan of the University of California, San Francisco, who led the study.

"I think the magnitude of the benefit was surprising," Van Blarigan told NBC News.

Read more: http://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/colon-cancer-survivors-live-longer-healthy-habits-n761231