HOW TO PREVENT CANCERS

Following closely on the heels of the American College of Sports Medicine Exercise Guidelines for Cancer Survivors, MacMillan Cancer Support in the UK this week is launching a Move More campaign designed to get cancer survivors up and moving and debunk the notion that rest is best for cancer survivors during and after treatment. As part of that MacMillan reviewed the evidence supporting a role for exercise in survivors. Expanding on the ACSM focus on clinical trials, the MacMillan report includes observational data – notably that showing that exercise reduces risk of recurrence and death in breast, colorectal and prostate cancer survivors. The MacMillan website holds a wealth of information, directed at survivors, on how to go about safely being active.



The benefits of activity, what we mean by activity, how to safely be active and how to get started are all covered in great detail.



Dr. Robert Thomas, a medical oncologist, sums it all up nicely in this video.



For other ways to stay healthy after a cancer diagnosis, check our our Cancer Survivors' 8 Ways. For more on how exercise can help prevent cancer, click over to the video from our 8 ways campaign.

For a long time, breast cancer survivors were told by physicians and others on the cancer care team to avoid overuse of their arms after breast cancer surgery. Told to avoid lifting items over 5 pounds (or sometimes as little as 2 pounds), women were functionally limited from activities of daily living - no lifting a gallon of milk or carrying in groceries, no picking up children or grandchildren for a nurturing hug, no participating in activities they once enjoyed like tennis or golf.



This week, those recommendations went out the window. Building on previous work that showed supervised progressive weight training did not effect limb swelling or exacerbate lymphedema in breast cancer survivors, this week, Katie Schmitz and colleages reported that the same weight training program did not CAUSE lymphedema in breast cancer survivors at risk of lymphedema (that is, with at least 2 lymph nodes removed during surgery who showed no signs of lymphedema at the start of the study).

The authors have cautioned: women who have lymphedema or are at risk of the condition should speak with their doctors and seek guidance from a certified fitness professional to learn safe weightlifting techniques, many of which can even be practiced at home with proper equipment. Women with lymphedema should also wear a well-fitting compression garment during all exercise sessions.

This is great news and suggests getting up and getting moving has even more benefits than previously thought for breast cancer survivors!

For a long time, the CNiC team has talked about 8 ways you can prevent cancer. This week, we're proud to announce our 8 ways to stay healthy AFTER cancer. With over 12 million cancer survivors in the US alone, addressing the chronic health needs of cancer survivors is a priority.

Readers will notice that there is a lot of overlap. This is in part because the leading causes of health challenges for cancer surviors (e.g., diabetes, heart disease) share risk factors with cancer itself. The time during and after cancer treatment can be a particularly challenging one, with information overload and an internet full of "miracle" promises. The key to these 8 ways is to not let them add to those feelings - start small, making 1 or 2 changes and add more as you are able.

1. Don't smoke. This is the single best thing you can do for your health as a survivor.
2. Avoid secondhand smoke. Avoid smoky bars and restaurants and make your home smokefree.
3. Avoid inactivity! Regular exercise helps improve the quality and quantity of your life.
4. Avoid weight gain. Eating is a common stress coping mechanism, but weight gain can increase your risk of recurrence and diminish your quality of life.
5. Eat a healthy diet. Focus on fruits and vegetables and whole grains, keeping red meat to a minimum. Avoid messages talking of miracles and quick fixes.
6. Alcohol is something to be consumed only in moderation, if at all.
7. Stay connected. Friends, family and other survivors can all provide important social and emotional support.
8. Get regular check-ups. This means getting necessary screening tests for other cancers and chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis.

It is never too early or too late to start making these changes to boost your health!

Here's a free printable guide to staying healthy after cancer.

Yesterday at the American College of Sports Medicine Annual Meeting (ACSM) in Baltimore, the new Exercise Guidelines for Cancer Survivors was presented at a panel led by Kathryn Schmitz of the University of Pennsylvania, Melinda Irwin of Yale University, and myself. These guidelines arose out of an expert roundtable hosted by the Siteman Cancer Center in June 2009 and will also be presented this week at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and later this month at the Biennial Cancer Survivorship Research Conference (link) in Washington.

The key take home point of these guidelines is that exercise is safe for cancer survivors and that they should avoid inactivity. Oncologists and surgeons can and should encourage patients to get up and get moving as soon as they are able, and as much as they are able, both during and after treatment for their cancer.

There is an extensive and high quality body of evidence demonstrating not only the safety of exercise but also that activity provides numerous benefits across cancer diagnoses. Clinicians and exercise professionals should tailor exercise recommendations to individual patients, taking into account their general fitness level, specific diagnosis, and factors about their disease that might influence exercise safety. For instance, patients who have undergone bone marrow transplant and have a weakened ability to fight infection, may be advised to avoid exercise in public gyms.

So like the rest of adults, cancer patients can and should try their best to get up and get moving.