Should You Exercise During Chemotherapy? What Is the Best Timing?

For cancer patients, we now know that  exercise is as effective as cancer drugs. Exercise is also one of the greatest things anyone can do for their health and quality of life, not only people with cancer.

JACC: CardioOncology published research suggesting that exercise during chemotherapy may prevent fatigue and preserve cardiorespiratory fitness.

Dr Gabriela GF van der Schoot and colleagues at University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands conducted a clinical trial in patients scheduled to receive curative chemotherapy, intended to achieve a complete cure. The patients included 139 with breast cancer, 95 with testicular cancer, 30 with colon cancer and 2 with lymphoma.

Patients were randomly assigned to a 24-week exercise intervention beginning during or after chemotherapy: exercise during chemotherapy was group A, and exercise after chemotherapy was group B.

The primary endpoint was peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak) 1 year after the intervention. The researchers found no difference between groups in VO2peak immediately after exercise or 1 year later.

However:

• Compared with group B, patients in group A had better VO2peak, health-related quality of life and muscle-strength measurements immediately after chemotherapy.
• Group A patients also reported less fatigue and more physical activity.

Below, the study’s graphical abstract can be seen:

In conclusion, we generally recommend that patients exercise while receiving chemotherapy or other cancer treatment. Patients with restricted movement due to recent surgery or musculoskeletal problems should discuss suitable exercise with their oncologist and an oncology rehabilitation specialist, such as a physical medicine or physiotherapy specialist. These findings suggest that the optimal timing for physical exercise is during chemotherapy. However, when exercising during chemotherapy is not possible, starting an exercise programme after chemotherapy is completed is a suitable alternative.