It’s not just yoga or tai chi for those who have had breast cancer. Indeed, disciplines that relax mind and body should always be accompanied by aerobic activity. And we’re not just talking about running or swimming here. Overcoming the clichés, playing soccer is also valid, as we tell this week in the Health Breast newsletter (here you will find all the links to register for free). To say this are the Danish researchers of two universities, the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) and the University of Copenhagen, who conducted the first study on the benefits of this sport for women operated on for breast cancer, entitled Football Fitness After Breast Cancer.
Breast Health Newsletter
Covid, vaccines and breast cancer: what you need to know
by Tiziana Moriconi
Through the Rigshospitalet University Hospital, 68 women between 23 and 74 years old were involved, divided into two groups (in a ratio of 2: 1). Of all the patients, 46 followed the experimental protocol, which involved training twice a week for one year, while the remaining 22 represented the control group. The training included warm-up, fitness, specific soccer exercises and 5-on-5, or 7-on-7 two-goal games. “The game of football is an intense and useful form of training for these patients, because it affects bone density, muscle strength and balance,” said Peter Krustrup, head of the Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics, which has been studying the positive physiological effects of different types of sports for more than 15 years.
Longform
Covid: you can continue to breastfeed
by Tina Simoniello
The effects of soccer on muscles and bones
Krustrup speaks with the data published on Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports e Acta Oncologica: various parameters – bone density, balance, muscle strength, percentage of fat mass, blood pressure and cholesterol – were measured after 6 and 12 months from the start of the program, and the patients completed questionnaires on quality of life and level of energy perceived in daily activities. In addition, the risk of developing lymphedema (swelling of the arm due to a lymphatic drainage problem: a possible, although less and less frequent, complication of axillary lymph node removal surgery) was assessed.
Breast cancer: it’s time for acupuncture
by Tiziana Moriconi
Results? The training improved leg muscle strength, balance and, most importantly, the bone density of the lumbar vertebrae in those who participated for less than an hour per week on average. For participants who trained more, bone density also increased in the femur. An important fact, since some oncological treatments, in particular hormonal ones, induce menopause and worsen the quality and quantity of bone mass, exposing you to the risk of fractures. Instead, the stress of the musculoskeletal system acts in the opposite direction, stimulating the development of bone tissue. The data on the improvement of balance is also important, because it reduces the risk of falls. Other drugs also affect muscle mass, which is therefore essential to recover. No improvement, as was expected, for lymphedema problems, but there was also no increase in risk, which, on the other hand, was feared. Finally, after 6 months, the participants reported that health problems were seen less as barriers, and after 12 months the perception of energy in daily activities increased.
PANIC BUTTON
Hypoechoic breast training, should I worry?
In short, football seems to be on the path of promotion as a sport that can benefit patients, so much so that researchers already imagine that they can extend this type of training nationwide, through the Danish Football Association and in collaboration with cancer centers. Obviously, we are referring to a protocol designed specifically for cancer patients and, in the meantime, the studies will continue in order to have stronger data on which to rely.
Saluteseno: Adamantia, astrophysicist and chess champion, talks about her cancer
by Tiziana Moriconi
Get into aerobic metabolism
“We now have some solid scientific evidence on the benefits of aerobic physical activity, especially in the context of breast cancer”, he comments Chiara Segrè, Head of Scientific Supervision of the Umberto Veronesi Foundation. It is often said that any business is fine, but that’s not quite the case. Of course, moving little is always better than nothing, but being able to obtain significant health benefits in the medium and long term is a different matter: “As with other aspects of life, you have to dedicate time and be consistent”, he continues. Secrets: “We must give the body time to enter the aerobic metabolism. If I run for 10 minutes, the body has a quick adaptation reaction, but it doesn’t trigger those metabolic changes that can really make a difference ”. For those changes, aerobic activity must be continued for over 30 minutes and performed at least 5 times a week. Because immediately available sugars are consumed first, only then glycogen and then fats. And this is where those positive mechanisms are triggered.
Breast cancer, oncologists appeal: “The Lazio region makes genomic tests reimbursable”
by Irma D’Aria
The benefits we are talking about are the same as shown by the Danish study: reduction in fat mass, blood sugar and hormone production. “This – explains Segrè – is an important aspect, because the breast tissue is subjected to hormonal regulation. Furthermore, prolonged and constant aerobic activity helps to strengthen the immune system and counteracts inflammation, which is at the root of many diseases, including tumors ”.
Advanced breast cancer, few women access genetic testing
Paddle that passes you
It will not be the case with football, but there are sports and disciplines that have shown that they can also improve lymphedema. One above all: the dragon boat, which has become one of the symbolic sports of women with breast cancer, so much so that the world championships and national competitions always include the “women in pink” regatta. But he is not the only one: Nordic walking and fencing also seem to be of help. And, if the pool water is not contraindicated (according to the therapies), swimming. In any case, whatever sport you decide to undertake, the comparison with your oncologist is always the first step to take.
Breast cancer, genomic tests for 800 patients every year in Sicily
The group is good for the mind
“Among the other positive effects to report there are the psychological ones, which in any case have a strong biological root”, he continues Secrets: “At the brain level, in fact, aerobic activity releases neurotrophic factors that are able to reduce anxiety and depression, and therefore the use of anxiolytic drugs, and even sleep problems. This occurs above all in patients who practice group sports ”. An effect that the women who participated in the project know well Pink Ambassador of the Veronesi Foundation, which for years has provided training supervised by professional coaches and meetings with a technical team made up of a nutritionist biologist and a psycho-oncologist, and which has just completed the formation of the new teams.
Breast cancer, Puglia: 600 chemotherapies a year can be avoided with genomic tests
The long-term “protective” effects
These are the medium-term effects. But in the long run, the benefits can be very important: “A reduction in the risk of relapse and mortality has been observed,” he says. Secrets: “Especially for hormone-dependent breast cancers, but not only, aerobic activity can reduce the risk of re-ill health by half”. This does not mean having the certainty that the tumor will not return or progress, because the factors on which its evolution depends are many, but it does mean that it is possible in any case to reduce the chances of this happening or delay its reappearance. “It also applies to those who have never had a tumor – concludes the expert – the benefits of physical activity are a certainty in the uncertainty”.
.