Research shows exercise can be the best medicine

Pumping iron may be the last thing on the minds of men undergoing treatment for prostate cancer, yet Dr Roanne Segal says hitting the gym is actually one of the best things men can do for their mental and physical health at this trying time.

Dr Segal, medical director of the oncology rehabilitation program at the Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre, recently led a study showing that resistance training reduces fatigue, increases muscular strength and improves quality of life in men with prostate cancer receiving androgen deprivation therapy. This type of treatment lowers levels of testosterone, a hormone responsible for muscle mass and strength.

“The comments I got from the men were incredible,” she says. “They’d stop me in the hallway to tell me how great they felt.” The study group participated in a supervised resistance training program 3 times per week. The research, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology in May, was funded by the Canadian Cancer Society.

Until a few years ago, the common wisdom among oncologists was that “rest was best” for patients feeling the sometimes debilitating side effects of cancer therapies. Today, thanks in part to Dr Segal’s research, physical activity is a standard prescription for weathering the trials of cancer treatment.

Dr Segal was a physiotherapist before going into medicine and used to race competitively in downhill skiing, so exercise has always been part of her life. Even before she gathered the empirical evidence to show that fitness can make cancer patients feel better, she was convinced it could only help.

To overcome the prevailing attitudes about cancer patients and exercise, a few years ago she conducted a study of women with early stage breast cancer who undertook a regular walking regimen for 6 months. Regardless of what type of treatment they were receiving (chemotherapy, hormonal and/or radiation therapy), the women in the walking group increased their physical functioning and had greater success managing their weight than the women in the control group.

In addition to improvements in the easily measurable factors such as strength and weight, Dr Segal says the psychological boost from exercise can be dramatic. Cancer patients feel renewed self-confidence and a sense of control over their health.

“It’s a non-toxic, inexpensive, easy intervention that doesn’t have to be done in a fancy facility,” she says. “And it’s never too late to start.” Her only caveat is that patients have their fitness programs designed and monitored by a health care professional.

With funding from the Canadian Cancer Society, Dr Segal is now studying the effects of aerobic versus resistance exercise on fatigue and body composition in about 210 men with prostate cancer receiving radiation therapy.

Last modified on: 10 December 2009