A retrospective study examining the difference in physical mobility between cancer survivors and those never diagnosed with cancer shows that poor mobility is strongly associated with mortality.
The beneficial role of physical activity in preventing cancer is well known, effects of exercise during and after cancer treatment are less well explored. Common cancers diagnosis and treatment has been shown to be linked to poor functional health, but association for other cancers is less well understood.
“Given that cancer survivors are living longer than ever, understanding how the diagnosis and treatment of a broad range of cancers may affect ambulatory function–a potentially modifiable risk factor–could lead to new treatment and rehabilitation strategies to improve the health of these patients,” explained Elizabeth Salerno, PhD, MPH, assistant professor of surgery at Washington University School of Medicine.
Using data from self-reported questionnaires from the National Institutes of Health American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Diet and Health Study, Dr Salerno and her team compared 30 403 cancer survivors to 202 732 individuals with no cancer diagnosis.
They found that cancer survivors were 42% more likely to walk at a slower pace than those without cancer diagnosis, and 24% more likely to have mobility disability after adjusting for factors such as weight. Those with slower walking or mobility disability were at greater risk for cancer-specific and all-cause mortality. The strongest association was seen for oral and respiratory cancers. Cancer survivors also had a stronger association with mortality and slower walking speeds than those without cancer diagnosis.
“Our findings suggest that functional health may be adversely affected by a broad range of cancer diagnoses and may be an important determinant for survival,” said Dr Salerno. “There is still much to be learned about these complex relationships, but our results highlight the potential importance of monitoring, and even targeting, ambulatory function after cancer for survival benefits, particularly in older cancer survivors.”
Salerno’s team will try to determine why some cancers were more associated with reduced mobility and mortality. “More information about behavioral, biological, and cancer-specific factors from before, during, and after diagnosis and treatment will be important to better characterize these associations in specific cancer types,” she said.
Source: Eureka Alert
