Good news: a recent study by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health of the United States of America, supports evidence that links physical activity with prolonged survival of women diagnosed with high-risk breast cancer.
According to the study, women who engaged in regular physical activity before cancer diagnosis and after treatment had less chance of cancer coming back or dying, compared to women who did not do physical activity.
Something unusual about the study is that, at different times (shortly before diagnosis, during chemotherapy, and after treatment ended), information was obtained on the levels of physical activity of women with high-risk breast cancer. ; that is, a cancer that is likely to spread.
“Our data seem to clearly indicate that the more consistent patient activity, the better health outcomes they had,” said study lead author Rikki Cannioto, Ph.D., Education Graduate, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo. New York).
In addition, although survival was prolonged in women who consistently met the Federal Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans over time compared to those who did not comply, “anyway there was an increase in the survival of women who [eran activas pero] they did not fully comply with the guidelines, “said Dr. Cannioto.
These results “provide evidence that physical activity at any time appears to benefit breast cancer survivors,” said Joanne Elena, Ph.D., Ph.D. in Public Health, from the Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program (EGRP) at the Division of Cancer Control and Demographic Sciences (DCCPS) from the NCI, which was not involved in the study.
“This study supports the evidence that being more physically active after a breast cancer diagnosis is one of the ways survivors can take charge, improve their health, and lower their chance of death,” said Kathryn Schmitz, Ph.D. and a Public Health graduate, an exercise and cancer researcher at Penn State School of Medicine, who was also not involved in the study.
The new study was published on April 2 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Move around as often as you can, whenever you can!
“This study is published when we already have national and international recommendations for physical activity for cancer survivors, in order to reduce the risk of recurrence and mortality,” said Dr. Schmitz, and the new results reaffirm these recommendations.
However, it is important to bear in mind that, “without a doubt, physical activity is not the only factor that determines the recurrence of breast cancer or death from this disease. It’s just one piece of the puzzle, ”said Dr. Elena.
“We don’t want someone to think, ‘If I exercise enough, the cancer won’t come back,'” he added. “But if they incorporate physical activity into their daily lives, this is likely to influence many aspects of the health of breast cancer survivors.” This includes quality of life, anxiety, tiredness and ability to tolerate treatments, as well as the risk of death.
Dr. Elena ended by saying that the key message for breast cancer survivors is “move as often as you can, whenever you can.”
-With information from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health of the United States of America-
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