Unintentional weight loss
When weight loss matters, the causes in proportion, a first-line work-up that reliably rules out most cancers, when to image, and how to feed safely without causing refeeding syndrome.
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Written with AI assistance and fact-checked against the sources below. For exam study, not clinical decisions. How notes are made
At a glance
- Unintentional loss of more than 5% of body weight over 6 to 12 months warrants assessment. It predicts higher mortality, especially in older people.
- Confirm the loss with recorded weights. Patient estimates are often wrong in both directions.
- Causes: malignancy about a quarter to a third, non-malignant organic disease about a third, psychiatric causes (mainly depression) 10 to 20%, and no cause found in up to a quarter.
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Sources
- Suspected cancer: recognition and referral (NG12)National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2015, last updated April 2026
- Optimal care pathwaysAU/NZCancer Council Australia
- GLIM criteria for the diagnosis of malnutrition: a consensus report from the global clinical nutrition communityClinical Nutrition (Cederholm et al.), 2019
- The Australasian Society of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition: consensus statements on refeeding syndromeAU/NZNutrition & Dietetics (Matthews-Rensch et al., 2025;82:128-42), 2025
- Nutrition support for adults: oral nutrition support, enteral tube feeding and parenteral nutrition (CG32)National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2006, updated 2017
- Weight loss as a predictor of cancer in primary care: a systematic review and meta-analysisBritish Journal of General Practice (Nicholson et al.), 2018
- Last updated
- 14 November 2026
What changed
- 14 November 2026 Personal emails, About story and Australian-style copy