Good physical fitness combined with muscular strength could reduce cancer patient deaths, a recent study suggests.
Researchers suggest that tailored exercise plans may prolong life for people living with cancer and boost their chances of survival. The study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine could have implications for clinical practice, with muscle strength exercises employed to increase life expectancy.
In 2022, 20 million people were diagnosed with cancer, and 10 million people died from their disease. Despite the significant progress that has been made in preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancer, projections show that cancer rates are predicted to rise further in the coming decades. It is often the side effects of treatments, particularly those which affect the heart and the muscles, which can reduce a patient’s life expectancy and counterbalance some of the benefits of treatment.
The researchers, led by Edith Cowan University in Australia, pooled data from 42 studies published in English in five databases up to August 2023 to examine whether physical fitness could extend survival rates in cancer patients. The 47,694 patients in the studies had an average age of 64 and had been diagnosed with various types and stages of cancer.
Muscle strength was determined by handgrip strength measurements. Depending on age, a handgrip strength of below 13 kg to below 25 kg was classified as low strength for women. Low strength was classified as below 20 kg to below 40 kg for men. CRF was assessed using either cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) or a 6-minute walk test (MWT).
The analysis suggests that both muscular strength and good physical fitness are associated with a significantly lower risk of death from any cause in cancer patients. Patients who maintained strong muscles and good overall fitness had a 31 to 46 per cent lower risk of dying from any cause compared to those with poor muscle strength and low cardiorespiratory fitness. This risk continued to fall by 11 per cent for each unit increase in muscular strength and 18 per cent for each unit increment in CRF.
In patients with advanced-stage cancer (stages 3 and 4), muscle strength and CRF were associated with an 8 to 46 per cent reduced risk of all-cause mortality and a 19-41 per cent lower risk of death from any cause among those with lung or digestive cancers.
The researchers stated: ‘Our findings highlight that muscle strength could potentially be used in clinical practice to determine mortality risk in cancer patients in advanced stages and, therefore, muscle strengthening activities could be employed to increase life expectancy.’
