Adherence
Higher pre-diagnosis physical activity is associated with significantly lower all-cause mortality in postmenopausal women with early-stage breast cancer, but this benefit does not differ based on the number of cardiometabolic risk factors.
If you have had early-stage breast cancer, staying physically active before and after diagnosis is linked to a lower risk of dying from any cause. This benefit appears to apply whether you have metabolic risk factors (like high blood pressure or diabetes) or not. Aim for regular moderate-to-vigorous activity, such as brisk walking or recreational exercise, as measured in MET-hours per week.
In multi-variable analyses, as measured from cancer diagnosis, higher physical activity levels were associated with lower all-cause mortality risk (hazard ratio [HR] 0.86, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78–0.95, trend P < 0.001) but not with breast cancer-specific mortality (HR 0.85, 95% CI 0.70 to 1.04, trend P = 0.09). The physical activity and all-cause mortality association was not significantly modified by cardiometabolic risk factor number.
Why this rating
Large sample size (n=8543 with full data), long follow-up (median 9.5 years post-diagnosis), and rigorous statistical adjustment for confounders, though it is an observational study.
Source
Cardiometabolic risk factors, physical activity, and postmenopausal breast cancer mortality: results from the Women’s Health Initiative
Christina M. Dieli‐Conwright et al. · BMC Women s Health · 2022
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