Research is being done by the University of Rochester Medical Centre into whether cancer patients could have a greater survival rate by being prescribed 20 minutes of yoga or walking exercise a day. The testing is due to prove with scientific clarity the benefits.
TheAmerican Society of Clinical Oncology meets today in Chicago for a few days discussing the latest hot topics, one of which is the specific prescription of exercise to cancer patients.
Professor Karen Mustian, specialist in exercise psychology related to cancer said "In 15 years we’ve gone from being afraid to recommend exercise to people
with cancer, to having enough data that shows, by and large, it is safe
and effective, particularly for relief of treatment side effects. When a patient walks in the door, he or she wants to know how to tailor
exercise to their own situation. Should I bike, walk, or lift weights?
Is there anything I should avoid? Can certain exercises lower my
fatigue? And the scientific community has not settled into a place where
we’ve developed explicit exercise prescriptions, or can effectively
narrow the choices for patients.”
Professor Mustian also said that the exercise-and-cancer dilemma harkens to
the days when it was not known what types of chemotherapy and how much
should be given to cancer patients. Through rigorous scientific inquiry,
physicians were able to refine the way they prescribe and administer
chemo (sic) she also believes that through rigorous study the same will be possible with exercise.
This follows on from previous studies which have suggested yoga has resulted in improvements in perceived difficulty with memory in one study, and less reported discomfort and pain in another study, amongst post-cancer females.
Original report here.
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