Have you ever considered the role of exercise as part of cancer treatment? Exercise hasn’t always
been considered an important component of cancer treatment, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you hadn’t. But that’s all changing, with more and more evidence suggesting that exercise can be a safe way to improve physical function (1) , reduce psychological distress (2) , improve quality of life (3), and reduce cancer related fatigue(4) for people undergoing cancer treatment. Not only that, but exercise plays a role in reducing the risk of some cancers (5) , and ongoing exercise beyond cancer treatment can reduce the risk of other complications associated with cancer and its treatments (6).
Exercise during cancer treatment should be tailored to each person with cancer’s current capacity
for exercise (7) and be adapted to consider the complications of cancer and its treatments that the
person may be experiencing (7). As such, the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia recommends that
exercise for people with cancer be delivered by a physiotherapist or exercise physiologist with an
understanding of cancer (7).
If you or someone in your life has been affected by cancer and would like to engage in an exercise
program, a good place to start would be discussing this with your treating doctor. From there, you or
your doctor can identify a physiotherapist or exercise physiologist with the expertise to help get you
moving towards your goals and exercising safely!
Reference list
1. Wu W, Guo F, Ye J, Li Y, Shi D, Fang D, et al. Pre- and post-diagnosis physical activity is
associated with survival benefits of colorectal cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-
analysis. Oncotarget. 2016;7(32):52095-103.
2. Craft LL, Vaniterson EH, Helenowski IB, Rademaker AW, Courneya KS. Exercise effects on
depressive symptoms in cancer survivors: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Cancer Epidemiol
Biomarkers Prev. 2012;21(1):3-19.
3. Mishra SI, Scherer RW, Snyder C, Geigle PM, Berlanstein DR, Topaloglu O. Exercise
interventions on health-related quality of life for people with cancer during active treatment.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2012;2012(8):Cd008465.
4. Cormie P, Zopf EM, Zhang X, Schmitz KH. The Impact of Exercise on Cancer Mortality,
Recurrence, and Treatment-Related Adverse Effects. Epidemiol Rev. 2017;39(1):71-92.
5. Moore SC, Lee I-M, Weiderpass E, Campbell PT, Sampson JN, Kitahara CM, et al. Association
of Leisure-Time Physical Activity With Risk of 26 Types of Cancer in 1.44 Million Adults. JAMA
Internal Medicine. 2016;176(6):816-25.
6. Meneses-Echávez JF, González-Jiménez E, RamÃrez-Vélez R. Effects of supervised exercise on
cancer-related fatigue in breast cancer survivors: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC
Cancer. 2015;15:77.
7. Cormie P, Atkinson M, Bucci L, Cust A, Eakin E, Hayes S, et al. Clinical Oncology Society of
Australia position statement on exercise in cancer care. Medical Journal of Australia.
2018;209(4):184-7.