Benefits of Home Exercise for People W/ Stage 4 Lung Cancer

[NikoleV]

Do you think exercise is beneficial when diagnosed with lung cancer? Thoughts?

Benefits of Home Exercise for People With Stage 4 Lung Cancer and Colon Cancer

http://lungcancer.about.com/b/2012/10/1 ... cancer.htm

By Lynne Eldridge MD, About.com Guide

October 11, 2012

Nobody needs to look far to hear about the benefits of exercise. But what about situations in which exercise is the last thing on anyone's mind. For example, if you are coping with stage 4 lung cancer or stage 4 colon cancer?

It's a really important question. Living with stage 4 cancer often means you don't feel up to much exercising. And, though I hate to speak what many of us may be thinking, is it really worth talking about exercise when someone may have limited time left here on earth?

It appears the answer is yes.

Researchers looked at the benefits of home exercise among people living with stage 4 lung cancer and colon cancer. These patients had an initial visit to talk about exercise, and then began to exercise 4 or more days a week. They were contacted every 2 weeks by telephone, and during those calls, the amount of exercise each person did was advanced as deemed appropriate to their situation.

Benefits of exercise were clearly noted, and included:

Increased mobility

Improved fatigue

Improved sleep quality

No significant difference was found in ability to perform daily activities, pain level, or quality of life between those in the exercise group and those in the control group who did not exercise.

I was pleased to hear the results of this study. As someone without stage 4 cancer it's difficult to encourage people living with advanced disease to exercise. And since exercise is often more enjoyable when done together, perhaps this study can encourage those of us without stage 4 disease to invite someone with stage 4 cancer to join us for a walk.