Posted on October 1, 2012
October is breast cancer awareness month.
I just got a great newsletter from one of my breast cancer groups, and in it was an article “Rx: exercise.” Bottom line, physical activity is good for you. It makes your body healthier, more mobile, stronger. It makes you feel better. But what affect does it have on cancer?
- Physical activity decreases breast cancer recurrence. The Nurses’ Health Study found women with early stage breast cancer had half the risk of breast cancer recurrence and half the risk of dying from the breast cancer. Exercise was deemed “moderate’ and involved 3-5 hours a week. (Holmes, JAMA 2005)
- It improves your body after cancer. I know this may seem obvious- it decreased body fat, increased lean muscle mass, and it helped maintain bone density (remember anti estrogens can decrease bone density). (Irwin, Journal of Obesity, 2007)
- In advanced breast cancer, researchers at Duke found those with metastatic breast cancer live longer when they have higher levels of aerobic fitness (Lee, Journal of Clincial Oncology , 2012)
So brush off those running shoes ladies. Breast cancer sucks. But exercise looks like it is good for you, not just for your mind, but for you to live longer as well.