Exercise "Better than drugs" New ASCO Research from Other than BCO
Just came across this today and found it interesting. The study was done on colon cancer patients, but they note that there is no reason not to think that similar findings would hold for other cancers. The actual percentages of benefit can seem low, as with drugs, and other "major breakthroughs, e.g. 35%, etc., but as my onc says, it's putting all these things together that add up to a more successful sort of thing. It's the combination of drugs, exercise, diet, mental health, and more that all ultimately come together to provide greater benefit, but this would seem to add one more tool to the tool box.
Editing to add a little better link to the ASCO version of the study. It has a little more of an academic perspective, but it's the same thing, just more straight from the horse's mouth than the Yahoo news article. In case anyone is looking for more technical detail.
https://www.asco.org/about-asco/press-center/news-releases/movement-medicine-structured-exercise-program-challenge
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@threetree Maybe we should revitalize the exercise with MBC thread. It's around here somewhere!
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Tougholdcrow - I think that "Let's Post Our Daily Exercise" thread is pretty popular and in regular use (not by me 😉). Seriously though, I do like to walk, so this study has made me feel a little better about it, like it's not just about my enjoying it, but it might actually be helping slow things down even if just a little bit.
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@threetree There was one specifically for Stage IV folks but the person who started it is no longer with us. In other news, there is a new study that shows coffee is good for women's general health as they age, which would also give us the energy we need to take that walk. Pardon me while I go and get my cup o joe (or maybe they should call it cup o jane).
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I just reactivated the Stage IV fitness thread by posting. Please look for it and let's keep the exercise thread moving (pun intended) 🚶♂️🏃🚴🏌️🧘🏋️
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Tougholdcrow - Funny, I'm having my cup of Joe/Jane while I sit here and go over these posts (how about just "cuppa J"?). It seems to be the one thing I can't give up, even though it seems to upset my stomach sometimes. I actually read that it's good for general liver health and I had not known that. It apparently has all sorts of health benefits. I did not know that there had been a stage IV fitness thread at all. I have heard that with stage 4, exercise isn't going to come close to being a cure of course, but I've read that there is some evidence that like with some food and drugs, it can help slow things down and "buy time", and I'll take that. We've got some nice sunny days here this week, so I will definitely try to get out and do my walks. Tried to yesterday but after about 3 blocks decided I needed to turn around and come back home due to lightheadedness, headache, and photophobia; very odd. Don't know if it's hormonal/migraine sort of thing, connected to the shingles I've been dealing with, or something entirely separate. I just hate this not knowing part of all of this. So many different things can cause all these symptoms we get, so never can really sort it all out. Enjoy that coffee and have a great walk!
Chicagoan - I will watch for that thread; nice that you reactivated it. (I'm sounding like some big exercise nut that I'm not. I just enjoy walking.) I also really do like your "pun intended". Good one!
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@threetree-Walking is fantastic exercise. We don't have to be exercise "nuts" but I do think it is very helpful for our physical and mental states to "Keep Moving" as our dear Zarovka, founder of the Stage 4 Exercise thread, used to say.
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Chicagoan - I agree wholeheartedly! I can't think of anything else that improves both my physical and mental health more than walking - and unlike a lot of other exercise, it's so pleasant to do.
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I daily-walked (and fasted) my way through my diagnosis and chemo and I do think it helped me have a good response to the treatment. It definitely helped burn off my anxiety, too.
Sad to say I have been much less dedicated in the years that followed.
But, I recently bought some new equipment and I’ve been a bit more consistent.
Two ideas that helped me make the baby steps back into daily movement - it’s okay to break down a daily half hour of movement into three 10 minute walks (or exercise sessions, whatever it is we feel up to). And….I can just walk around the kitchen island or whatever room for 10 mins to get my steps in if it’s bad weather or I don’t want to take the trouble to go outside. The walk-in-the-house idea I got from my sister who does this after meals because she’s Type 2 and does it to burn the glucose.
Maybe I will join the Stage 4 thread. I have been tracking my activity on a pad that says DO THE IMPOSSIBLE. Haha, it makes me feel a little motivated.
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Olma - I noticed you have the Kierkegaard quote about walking. I've seen that one before and it sticks with me, especially in regard to all this cancer stuff. I used to do more diligent fasting too, but I'm gradually slacking off and want to tighten that back up again. I do intermittent (overnight) fasting and very, very rarely 24 or 72 hour type fasting. I try to have an 8 hour "eating window", but I've gradually let it slip to where I'm stretching that out too much. I actually had wanted to shore it up to 6 hours, but instead of making things tighter, I slacked and now I've got more like a 9 or even 10 hour eating window and I don't like that.
I too love the idea that if you have to, you can just walk around your house and get benefit. After I had my mastectomy, the surgeon told me he wanted me to walk something like 5 or 6 times a day (to prevent blood clots). At that time, I had no idea how I would do that and realized the only way would be to walk around my apartment. I did and I think it made a difference. Like you, I've also heard that you can break up the walking into short 10 minute spurts if a longer time period isn't possible. So far I've been able to do 40-60 minutes outside with no real trouble, but I keep it in mind that if it gets to that point, I could go for several short walks every day and still get the same benefit.
It looks like you've done really well. Just keep on walking like Kierkegaard says. (Actually I think the original quote is something about everything be alright as long as "it's in motion", but I think it gets the same point across either way.
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Hi folks! Here is the Stage IV MBC Fitness thread. Thank you, @chicagoan for activating it. Let’s keep moving! 🏃♀️💪🏋️♀️
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Also, here is our recent podcast on this breaking news:
We hope this helps!
—The Mods
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@chicagoan yes and I was encouraged to do fasting after reading about Dr Valter Longo’s research. I believe (unconfirmed, just my best guess) I was in a state of hyperinsulemia for a long time due to poor eating habits brought on by hormonal changes which may have contributed to the breast cancer
@threetree yes, I was so out of shape and out of habit of activity, that walking was all I could do when I started and I just did what I was able, about 10 minutes at a time, until I could do more. Menopause really did a number on me. But now the breaking it down to 10 minutes also works when I’m having busy days and/or feeling fatigued.
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@olma61 and @threetree I remember that in the first several months after I was diagnosed, my body was so weakened by the cancer that I could not even walk a half mile without resting midway. I walked outside with poles and had to sit on a bench every ten minutes or so, then get up and walk a little more. I say this to encourage those who think that they can't exercise anymore. Even after our bodies have been ravaged by cancer and treatment, in most cases, we can rebuild strength and stamina by doing what we can, resting and then getting up again and doing a little more.
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Olma - I can't quite remember now just where I learned about intermittent fasting, but whatever it was, it eventually led me to Valter Longo's work too. Re the walking and 10 minutes kind of thing, Tougholdcrow recently posted on the MBC Stage 4 Fitness thread about how things like taking the bus and just walking that little bit of extra to and from stops, etc. can help too. I added that even when driving, parking just a little further from your destination and walking a little bit that way can help too. It all adds up.
Chicagoan - Oh that fatigue that comes before diagnosis. I had no clue that the fatigue I was feeling just taking a shower was indicating cancer. With hindsight I can see it all. I thought it was the "getting older" thing initially, so never thought of going to the doctor. The treatments have helped and things like showers don't wipe me out as much these days, although it is harder in general. Yes, I agree that even after these diagnoses and treatments, we can rebuild strength and continue to improve in many ways. Actually since I don't work as much and don't have all the sitting that was involved with that, I've been able to walk more and I think I might actually be in better physical shape in that regard.
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I think drs and medical centers should push this more. I credit exercise with keeping me cancer free for all the years after my initial diagnosis. I could not tolerate hormone inhibitors. The miniscus tore off my knee one day after a work out and I had to stop some of what I was doing due to pain. Within 3 months my cancer came back. Took 6 months to realize something was seriously wrong because the pain meds for my knee cause gastro reflux which has similiar symptoms to a pleural effusion. It wasn't until I became short of breath that I realized something else was going on. Sometimes life sucks. Since then I have gotten back to working out. Just not as much as before mets.
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I have to say, I was lucky in this regard. When I was first diagnosed, one of the ‘cancer support services’ at my cancer center was 3 months of free use of the gym that was part of the hospital and sessions with the exercise physiologists employed there. That was an NCI cancer center. The next place I was treated at had nothing like that and never mentioned healthy lifestyle much at all.
When I moved, I went for treatment at a teaching hospital, also an NCI cancer center, and the doctor there referred me for Zoom meetings with the exercise physiologist. He gave me a workout plan and the schedule for the at-home exercise also via Zoom. Unfortunately, that center did not have a gym of their own.
I moved again and went to a smaller oncology practice where again, they did not discuss exercise and stying active nor offer any support service in that area.
So, it seems from my own experience, the larger NCI-Designated cancer centers are pretty much on top of this area of medicine, while the smaller practices still lag behind.
In addition to the above mentioned study, there have been some studies specific to breast cancer patients that seemed to indicate that regular exercise can decrease recurrence risk. I do believe they have (finally) started to study whether or not exercise can improve survival for MBC patients!
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My oncologist asks at every visit "Still playing a lot of tennis?". And he smiles when I say "4 or 5 days a week". I really think tennis has kept me feeling good. Not only the exercise, but the social part.
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@tnsplayer Agreed-Pickleball is very social too. As someone who lives alone, the socialization is just as important as the exercise. Good for you for playing 4-5 times per week!
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