Effective physical exercise during chemotherapy

This trial compared doses and types of exercise for improving physical functioning and symptom management in breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy is the use of anti-cancer (cytotoxic) drugs to destroy cancer cells. The aim of chemotherapy is to do the maximum damage to cancer cells (cells that grow and multiply rapidly) while causing the minimum damage to healthy tissues. However, since some healthy cells such as skin, blood or bowel cells also grow and multiply faster than other cells, chemotherapy can also damage these cells, thus causing side effects such as skin discoloration, tiredness (fatigue), nausea and vomiting. Many clinical trials are looking at improving the effectiveness of chemotherapy, while reducing the amount of side effects. Previous studies have reported that physical exercise can reduce the risks associated with cancer treatments and can improve the overall health and outcomes of breast cancer patients. This trial aimed to evaluate which type and dose of exercise is the best in helping breast cancer patients deal with chemotherapy.

The trial included 301 patients with breast cancer treated with chemotherapy. During chemotherapy, the participants were randomly assigned to three aerobic groups for 3 times a week. 96 participants were assigned to a standard dose of aerobic exercise or STAN (aerobic exercise for 25-30 minutes), 101 participants were assigned to a higher dose aerobic exercise group or HIGH (aerobic exercise for 50-60 minutes) and 104 participants were assigned to a combination group or COMB (aerobic exercise and resistance exercise for 50-60 minutes). The main parameters evaluated were the physical component summary (a measure of health status to determine the cost-effectiveness of a health treatment), pain and breast cancer symptoms like fatigue and hormonal imbalance.

Results showed that HIGH was superior to COMB and COMB was superior to STAN regarding the physical component summary and pain reduction. Both HIGH and COMB groups were superior to STAN for managing hormonal symptoms and HIGH was superior to the STAN group for fatigue management. In addition, all types of exercise improved the overall physical functioning of breast cancer and helped them complete chemotherapy.

In summary, a higher dose of aerobic or combined exercise is safe during chemotherapy for breast cancer and may manage declines in physical functioning and hormonal symptoms better than standard doses of exercise.

Consult your physician about the appropriate type and dose of exercise in your situation.