During the past several months, there have been some gung-ho participants in the Cancer Center Kitchen Therapy sessions at St. Rose Ambulatory & Surgery Center.

          Now Leigh Wagner, one of the dietitians leading the sessions, is encouraging more local residents to participate in the free event. The next televideo Kitchen Therapy presentation is set for noon Thursday, Aug. 21.

          “We have had some really engaged participants at St. Rose and are hoping for an even bigger turnout this month,” Wagner said. “There has been good response from our regulars and we want to share our cooking tips with more people.”

          While the one-hour classes were designed with cancer patients in mind, Wagner noted the information is valuable to anyone who wants advice about a healthier diet.

          “We teach a whole-food, minimally processed way of cooking,” Wagner explained. “These are simple recipes and we demonstrate how to make them step-by-step.

          “The audience can interact with me and Randy Evans, another KU dietitian,” she added. “We encourage people to make the recipes at home and come back to the next session with their feedback.”

          The Midwest Cancer Alliance (MCA) sponsors the sessions; St. Rose is a member of MCA, which is the outreach arm of The University of Kansas Cancer Center.

          St. Rose is part of Centura Health, which connects individuals and families across western Kansas and Colorado with more than 6,000 physicians, 15 hospitals, seven senior-living communities, physician practices and clinics, and home-care and hospice services.