Research

Mixed

Breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy exhibit significantly impaired muscle strength (5-25% lower in lower extremities, 12-16% in upper extremities) and increased muscular fatigue compared to healthy controls, regardless of whether treatment is ongoing or completed.

Breast cancer patients, especially those undergoing chemotherapy, experience significant and measurable muscle strength loss (up to 25% in legs, 16% in shoulders) and faster fatigue compared to healthy peers. This loss is driven by both the direct toxic effects of chemotherapy on muscle fibers and reduced physical activity. To counteract this, patients should engage in resistance training as early as possible, as it is safe during treatment and helps preserve muscle function, which is critical for survival and quality of life.

GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
On average, patients had up to 25% lower strength in lower extremities and 12–16% in upper extremities in MVIC and MIPT during cancer treatment compared with healthy women. Chemotherapy-treated patients had consistently higher FI%.
Oliver Klassen et al. · Journal of Cachexia Sarcopenia and Muscle · 2016

Why this rating

Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from two RCTs with a large sample size (N=255 patients, N=26 controls) and rigorous isokinetic/isometric testing.

Source

Muscle strength in breast cancer patients receiving different treatment regimes

Oliver Klassen et al. · Journal of Cachexia Sarcopenia and Muscle · 2016

DOI 10.1002/jcsm.12165

cross_sectional · n=281Cited 233×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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