The team of lecturers from the Faculty of Nursing, Universitas Islam Sultan Agung Semarang namely Fitria Endah Janitra, Kurnia Wijayanti, and Indah Sri Wahyuningsih made a BESTCARE (Breast Cancer and Palliative Care) program under the auspices of the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education. This program is aimed to support Sultan Agung Islamic Hospital Semarang in conducting community service activities for cancer patients, one of which was the BESTCARE (Breast Cancer and Palliative Care) program by fulfilling nutritional needs.

This activity was carried from February 2019 until now in the family waiting room in the oncology ward (Darussalam) which was attended by 26 people from the cancer patient families. The series of activities began with the presentation of the importance of nutrition for cancer patients, the benefits, and the process of making beet juice.

Beets contain vitamins A, B, and C with high water content. In addition to vitamins, beetroot also contains carbohydrates, protein, and fat which are useful for the health of the body. Other minerals are also contained in beetroot such as iron, calcium and phosphorus. After the materials were given, the patients’ families were able to increase his knowledge by about 70%, and were able to practice making beetroot juice. Family empowerment in improving nutrition for cancer patients is as a form of effective effort in increasing the levels of hemoglobin (HB).

Head of Darussalam Room, Putri Novyana Sari, Amd. Kep., welcomed the activities of the BESTCARE Team. This activity could be held successfully in collaboration with Sultan Agung Islamic Hospital, and full support from the Ministry of Research and Technology which provided grants for community service in 2019.

According to Kurnia Wijayanti, the problems that often occur in cancer healing are the lack of nutrition because of nausea and vomiting after chemotherapy which make it difficult for patients to meet their daily nutritional needs. Lack of nutritional intake and hyper metabolism will lead to low levels of hemoglobin in the blood or often referred to as anemia.