Exercise slows cancer, expert says
Regular exercise could help reduce the effects of cancer while also improving life after it has been beaten, new research shows.
Speaking to a group of medical professionals and members of the Taranaki Cancer Society at Taranaki Base Hospital last week, Australian associate professor Prue Cormie said mortality rates among cancer sufferers who regularly exercised fell between 28 and 44 per cent.
‘‘Exercise does significantly protect against dying from cancer, against cancer coming back and it reduces the severity of treatment related side effects in people with cancer,’’ she said.
Cormie, an exercise physiologist, was the lead author of a review of 100 studies involving tens of thousands of cancer patients which was publish in the American Journal of Epidemiology.
She said the quality of the exercise was important, as someone going for a brisk walk would see more benefits than someone going for a leisurely stroll. ‘‘We see that people who are exercising at a higher rate have a lower relative risk of their cancer coming back, and that’s around a 25 or 30 per cent reduction,’’ she said.
‘‘The people who are walking faster or swimming faster or cycling faster have even greater benefits than people who are doing it at a slower pace.’’
The research was supported by wider studies which found exercise reduced the risk from other health complications.
‘‘After a diagnoses of cancer, if you exercise you have a lower relative risk of dying from any other disease,’’ Cormie said. She said there was a relationship between people exercising more and better outcomes, but they didn’t know exactly why that was.
Cormie said the research had found a good balance was a 30-minute brisk walk, five days a week plus two to three moderate intensity resistance training session such as lifting weights.
But she said it was also important to make sure the right type of exercise was prescribed for the different types of patients and suggested patients and medical professionals should talk to exercise physiologists. She also said there needed to be more funding for exercise prescriptions.
‘‘By having qualified exercise specialists and dedicated exercise programs available for cancer patients in the community and hospital we can reduce the impact a diagnosis has on the health and well-being of those affected by cancer, improve outcomes for patients and potentially reduce health system expenditure,’’ she said.