Exercise promotes breast cancer survival
Women who walk three-to five-hours a week are 50 percent less likely to die from breast cancer
Boston, MA – Exercise plays a role in preventing breast cancer and research strongly suggests that breast cancer patients who are more physically active improve their self-esteem and body image. Now, a landmark study from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) finds that exercise after diagnosis may help breast cancer patients live longer. The study appears in the May 25, 2005 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
According to lead author BWH researcher Michelle D. Holmes, MD, DrPH, “It is well established that exercise plays an important role in preventing many diseases, including breast cancer. However, we found that women who are physically active after breast cancer diagnosis may lower their risk of death from breast cancer and cancer recurrence.”
The study included almost 3,000 women who were diagnosed with breast cancer between 1984 and 1998 and followed by questionnaires until June 2002.
Dr. Holmes and her team report these major findings:
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Any amount of exercise, even walking just one hour per week, helped promote breast cancer survival.
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Compared to physically inactive women with breast cancer, women who engaged in moderate exercise equivalent to three-to five-hours of walking per week, lowered their risk of death by approximately 50 percent.
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Beyond this threshold (three-to five-hours of walking at a moderate pace) there appeared to be little evidence of increased benefit from more exercise.
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Women who received the greatest benefit from exercise had the most common type of cancer, one in which the breast tumors are susceptible to hormone levels. This finding suggests that exercise may improve survival by reducing hormone levels and thereby suppress tumor growth and recurrence.
“Currently, only a third of breast cancer survivors meet government recommended activity guidelines,” Holmes said, who is also an assistant professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. “The results tell us that if women with breast cancer are active they may live longer as well as better.”
Please contact BWH Media Relations for more information at (617) 534-1600 or BWHMediaRelations@partners.org.
BWH is a 747-bed nonprofit teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School and a founding member of Partners HealthCare System, an integrated health care delivery network. BWH is committed to excellence in patient care with expertise in virtually every specialty of medicine and surgery. The BWH medical preeminence dates back to 1832 and today that rich history in clinical care is coupled with its national leadership in quality improvement and patient safety initiatives, dedication to educating and training health care professionals, and strength in biomedical research. With $370M in funding and more than 500 research scientists, BWH is an acclaimed leader in clinical, basic and epidemiological investigation - including the landmark Nurses Health Study, Physicians Health Studies, and the Women's Health Initiative. For more information visit www.brighamandwomens.org
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