Colon Cancer: Exercise Can Stop It Without Chemotherapy

Every year, fifty thousand Italians discover that they have colorectal cancer. The good news is that, if detected in the early stages, it can be treated very well, by surgically removing the tumor and then performing an adjuvant therapy that wipes out any residual cells. Unfortunately, however, the disease is often discovered when it is already in an advanced stage. Then things get complicated, and the risk of seeing it return is 30%. At that point, chemotherapy is needed, which works at the cost of side effects that are often difficult to bear. But a study presented at Asco, the most important oncology conference in the world, currently underway in Chicago, offers an alternative.

Physical activity that avoids chemo

A team of Canadian and Australian researchers has demonstrated that a structured physical activity program followed by a trainer can keep the disease at bay for years, without the need for chemotherapy.

It has already been scientifically proven that a healthy lifestyle, consisting of good nutrition and exercise, can prevent relapses. And international guidelines tell oncologists to educate their patients about this. But these are mostly vague indications, and people do not follow them adequately.

The new study, instead, went to see what happens if simple counseling is replaced by a structured program, followed by a personal trainer who will write the patient a real "prescription", clearly indicating what he must do. Not only that; after 6 months, patients are called to meet their personal trainer and, from that moment on, they see him once a month. Those who follow this program have a 37% lower probability of dying.

Because it is also economically convenient

“The study is very important, because it scientifically demonstrates that involving patients in a structured program is better than counseling alone. Which is not to say that informing patients about the importance of physical activity is not important, indeed it should become part of the clinical routine in all visits. But of course, to improve adherence and the effectiveness of physical activity, structured programs must be encouraged,” comments Massimo Di Maio, president-elect of Aiom and associate professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Turin.

This requires an organizational effort: involving doctors and nurses, perhaps even patient associations. And it certainly poses a resource problem in an already stressed context such as oncology departments. “But it can be done. It is a program for which the cost-benefit ratio is much more convenient than other pharmacological interventions, for example,” adds Di Maio.

The biological reasons

“There are precise biological reasons that explain the effectiveness of physical exercise against tumor proliferation,” adds the oncologist. And he talks about effects on inflammation, metabolism, the endocrine system, the immune system.

For example, Di Maio continues: "Physical activity can determine a reduction in the body mass index, but it also decreases the time that toxic substances remain in the intestine. Not only that: it stimulates the immune system, helps reduce insulin resistance, and modulates the variation in the level of hormones such as estrogen."

How to move

It's about understanding what kind of activity to do. "Of course," Di Maio adds, "we will have to be careful to calibrate the activity on the patient's health status, on his general clinical conditions. This is why DIY is not recommended."

The study presented at Asco has in fact demonstrated that a small portion of the people who participated in the program had musculoskeletal consequences.