Effect of exercise on pain and functional capacity in breast cancer patients

Andréa Dias Reis, Paula Tamara Vieira Teixeira Pereira, Renata Rodrigues Diniz, Jurema Gonçalves Lopes de Castro Filha, Alcione Miranda dos Santos, Bianca Trovello Ramallo, Florentino Assenço Alves Filho, Francisco Navarro, João Batista Santos Garcia

To assess the influence of combined training on pain, fatigue, maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max), body mass index (BMI), flexibility, and strength in patients with breast cancer. A controlled pilot study with 28 patients undergoing chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and clinical observation in a renowned cancer treatment center; the patients were aged from 30 to 59 years old and were not engaged in physical training for three months previously. The Study Group (SG) underwent 12 weeks of training, including three 60-min sessions of aerobic exercise and resistance training, and two sessions of flexibility training per week; each flexibility exercise lasted 20 s and was performed in sets of three repetitions. The Control Group (CG) received only the standard hospital treatment. Participants were evaluated at the beginning of the study to establish a baseline and reevaluated at the end of 12 weeks. Patients in the SG showed a significant decrease in total pain points (p = 0.0047), pain intensity (p = 0.0082), and the extent to which pain interfered with their daily life (p = 0.0047). There was an increase in maximum oxygen uptake (p = 0.0001), flexibility (p = 0.0001), and strength on both sides (right p = 0.0001 and left p = 0.0008). No significant differences were observed in fatigue (p = 0.0953) or BMI (p = 0.6088). Combined training was effective in decreasing pain and increasing VO2max, flexibility and static strength in patients with breast cancer. NCT03061773 . Registered on February 19, 2017, 'retrospectively registered'.