Exercise relieves side effects of cancer treatment

Cancer Patients: Combat Side Effects of Tumor Therapy Through Exercise

Although chemotherapy improves the chances of survival in many cancers, it is often associated with severe side effects such as fatigue and polyneuropathy. A movement therapy can help to reduce the sometimes severe restrictions and increase the quality of life of those affected.

Cancer therapy with serious side effects

Cancer patients usually suffer not only from their illness but also from the consequences of the treatment. The therapy increases the already significant burden and often leads to chronic fatigue and fatigue: this is also known as fatigue syndrome. In addition, many patients have polyneuropathy, a damage to the nerves. As the German Cancer Aid now reports targeted exercise therapy training can help to reduce the sometimes severe restrictions and increase the quality of life of those affected.

Cancer treatment is usually associated with side effects such as fatigue and polyneuropathy. These complaints can be alleviated by a movement therapy, according to experts. (Image: oneinchpunch / fotolia.com)

Reduction of physical activity

According to the experts, recent study results - including a meta-analysis from the US - have shown that physical activity reduces symptoms more successfully than medical or psychological therapy.

"Exercise is the most appropriate 'drug' for reducing the fatigue syndrome," said PD Dr. Freerk Baumann, head of the working group Oncological Movement Medicine at the Center for Integrated Oncology (CIO) Cologne / Bonn.

Other experts have also pointed out in the past how effective physical activity can be in fatigue.

For example, the Society for Radiation Oncology (DEGRO) reported in an earlier communication that, among other things, exercise can alleviate fatigue in cancer treatment.

Exercise therapy helps

According to the German Cancer Aid, however, there are new findings not only in the treatment of fatigue syndrome.

"Also in chemotherapy-induced polyneuropathy (CIPN), studies show that exercise therapy helps. For polyneuropathy, there is no other treatment method whose long-term effect could be proven, "says Baumann.

"Sensorimotor training and possibly also vibration training achieve the best effects in the treatment of nerve damage, such as limited touch on the hands and tingling and pain on the hands and feet."

This approach is currently being pursued in a joint study by the German Sport University Cologne and the University of Cologne. Initial research supports the assumption that special exercise training could have an inhibitory effect on CIPN.

Individually adapted to the patient

Despite the successes that can be achieved with targeted exercise therapy, it is difficult to create appropriate care structures for all patients.

"Therapeutic training during medical cancer therapy must be tailored to the individual patient. This requires specially trained sports and physical therapists, of whom there is currently not enough, "said the director of the CIO, Professor. Michael Hallek.

"In addition, there are also space and financial bottlenecks in oncology centers to acquire quality exercise equipment."

To make matters worse, the sports therapy is not listed in the catalog of remedies, in contrast to physiotherapy, although the positive effects of sports therapy are already very well scientifically proven.

"Here, health policy is required to change this as soon as possible", says PD Dr. med. Baumann. "Because if sports therapy were included in the catalog of remedies, it would be much easier for the cancer centers to set up corresponding movement-therapeutic structures." (Ad)