Fatigue strength training helps breast cancer patients

Fatigue: Strength training helps breast cancer patients

09/10/2014

The majority of breast cancer patients have to deal with a fatigue syndrome. In order to alleviate or even avoid the leaden tiredness and states of exhaustion, affected women will be advised to regularly train strength.

Strength training can relieve or even eliminate fatigue
Breast cancer patients should regularly undergo strength training during routine therapy in order to alleviate or even avoid the lead fatigue that usually accompanies the disease and therapy. This is recommended by the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) in Heidelberg, citing a recent study. The results of the investigation were published in the journal „Annals of Oncology“ released.

Relaxation exercises also increase mental well-being
Relaxation exercises also increase the mental well-being of the patients, but strength training causes sufferers much less exhaustion symptoms. The research team around Prof. Dr. med. Karen Steindorf randomly divided 160 breast cancer patients into two groups, a sports group and a relaxation group, for the comparative study. In the sports group, the participants trained twice a week for one hour. They had to provide information about their mental and physical condition in a detailed questionnaire, both before and after the training was completed after twelve weeks. In addition, her fitness was medically examined.

An apparently effective method
It was found that the breast cancer patients of the sports group suffered significantly less from symptoms of fatigue, and important aspects of the quality of life improved, as well as - as expected - physical strength. There were no differences in terms of emotional and cognitive parameters. „In the overall evaluation we achieve much better results with the strength training“, explained Steindorf. „It seems to be an effective way to prevent or alleviate distressing fatigue symptoms. In addition, patients also benefit from better physical performance in their everyday lives.“

Hypnosis against fatigue
Just a few months ago it was reported that hypnosis also works against fatigue. For example, US researchers have found that fatigue and fatigue associated with radiotherapy for breast cancer can be reduced with few side effects by adjunctive treatment with hypnosis and behavioral therapy. The 200 breast cancer patients participating in the study were divided into two groups. It turned out that the volunteers who had received radiation therapy and additionally also behavioral therapy combined with hypnosis were less exhausted than many of the control group patients. (Ad)