Research
Adherence
Regular exercise (specifically thrice-weekly moderate-intensity aerobic activity and twice-weekly resistance training) improves cancer-related health outcomes including fatigue, anxiety, depression, quality of life, and physical function, and does not exacerbate lymphedema.
If you have cancer or are a survivor, ask your oncologist about exercise. They can refer you to a program. The recommended dose is 30 minutes of moderate aerobic activity 3 times a week and resistance training 2 times a week. This improves fatigue, mood, and function, and is safe even if you have lymphedema.
StrongSupportsHIGH confidence
In brief, the expert panel found that the majority of cancer health-related outcomes in the “strong” evidence category of Table 2 are improved by doing thrice-weekly aerobic activity for 30 minutes and that there is also evidence of a benefit for most of those same outcomes from twice-weekly resistance exercise: one exercise per major muscle group, 8 to 15 repetitions per set, 2 sets per exercise, progressing with small increments.
Why this rating
Based on ACSM Roundtable reviews citing strong evidence levels from multiple systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
Source
Exercise is medicine in oncology: Engaging clinicians to help patients move through cancer
Kathryn H. Schmitz et al. · CA A Cancer Journal for Clinicians · 2019
narrative_reviewCited 796×
Read the paper This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →