To investigate the effect of individualized nutritional support on respiratory rehabilitation therapy for elderly patients with advanced lung cancer.

A total of 60 elderly patients with stageⅣ lung cancer admitted to the General Hospital of Southern Theater Command of the Chinese People's Liberation Army from May 2020 to July 2021 were enrolled in the study. According to the random number table method, the patients were divided into control group and observation group, with 30 patients in each group. The control group received routine care and respiratory rehabilitation therapy, while the observation group received individualized nutritional support in addition. All patients received 3 weeks of continuous intervention. The lung function, exercise tolerance, nutritional index, immune fuction, and quality of life of the two groups before and after intervention were compared. T test was used to compare each index before and after intervention.

After intervention, the forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in one second, and total lung capacity of both groups increased, residual volume decreased, and 6-min walk distance increased in both groups, especially in the observation group (t=2.869, 2.759, 2.236, 6.033, 3.351; P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); the body mass index, serum albumin, prealbumin, and immunoglobulin G/A/M levels were improved in both groups, and the improvements in the observation group were more significant (t=2.110, 2.465, 2.271, 5.618, 2.467, 4.695; P < 0.05 or P < 0.01); the emotional function, role function, physical function, cognitive function and social function increased in both groups, and the observation group had higher scores than control group (t=4.750, 2.577, 2.689, 4.304, 2.427; P < 0.05 or P < 0.01).

Individualized nutritional support can significantly improve the lung function, exercise tolerance, nutritional status, and immune function of elderly patients with advanced lung cancer undergoing respiratory rehabilitation, thus improving their quality of life.