Cancer patients with high muscle strength and cardiorespiratory fitness levels have significantly lower risk for all-cause mortality<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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THURSDAY, Jan. 23, 2025 (HealthDay News) — For patients diagnosed with cancer, high muscle strength and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) are associated with a reduced risk for all-cause mortality, according to a review published online Jan. 21 in the British Journal of Sports Medicine<\/em>.<\/p>\n Francesco Bettariga, from the Exercise Medicine Research Institute at Edith Cowan University in Joondalup, Australia, and colleagues conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the association of muscle strength and CRF with all-cause and cancer-specific mortality in patients diagnosed with cancer. Data were included from 42 studies, with 46,694 participants.<\/p>\n The researchers found that compared with those with low physical fitness levels, cancer patients with high muscle strength or CRF levels had a significant reduction in the risk for all-cause mortality by 31 to 46 percent. Per unit increments in muscle strength, there was a significant 11 percent reduction seen in all-cause mortality. In patients with advanced cancer stages, muscle strength and CRF were associated with an 8 to 46 percent reduced risk for all-cause mortality, while the risk was reduced by 19 to 41 percent in patients with lung and digestive cancers. There was a significant 18 percent reduction seen in the risk for cancer-specific mortality in association with unit increments in CRF.<\/p>\n “From a practical perspective, implementing tailored exercise prescriptions to enhance muscle strength and CRF throughout the cancer continuum may contribute to reducing cancer-related mortality,” the authors write.<\/p>\n