Exercise is a wonder drug for all patients getting cancer treatment and may prevent the returning of the disease. Physical workout could also benefit cancer survivors, said report by Macmillan Cancer Support. The study has shown that physical activity can diminish the risk of dying from cancer and minimize the side effects of treatment.
The adult cancer patients and cancer survivors should exercise for one hundred and fifty minutes at moderate intensity per week. The report urges the doctors to prescribe exercise to patients rather than rest. The review of more than sixty studies showed that being active during treatment does not worsen fatigue but has positive effects on mood and wellbeing.
When the treatment has finished, the physical activity can diminish the impact of side effects like anxiety, fatigue, depression, impaired mobility, swelling and alterations in weight. The study has also shown that exercise has an impact on preventing recurrence of a few specific cancers.
The earlier study shows that moderate exercise to the recommended levels such as one hundred and fifty minutes a week can diminish the risk of recurrence of breast cancer recurring by forty percent. For the prostate cancer the risk of dying from the disease is diminished by thirty percent and in bowel cancer patients risk is reduced by fifty percent.
Moderate exercise comprises very brisk walking, heavy cleaning like washing windows, vacuuming and mopping, mowing the lawn, cycling and badminton. More than half of GPs, oncologists and cancer nurses did not talk with tier patients about the potential benefits of physical activity, found report by Macmillan Cancer Support.
Women who carry the rogue DNA are more than six times prone to develop tumours in comparison to others. The invention is the biggest breakthrough in the genetics of the cancer for decades could pave the way for better tests and treatments and could save hundreds of lives each year.
According to Jane Maher, chief medical officer of Macmillan Cancer Support and a leading clinical oncologist if physical exercise were a drug, it would be hitting the headlines. There really needs to be a cultural change so that health professionals see physical activity as an integral part of cancer aftercare, not just an optional add-on.