Effects Of Supervised Exercise Interventions On Cancer-related Fatigue In Breast Cancer Survivors During Active Treatment: a Meta-analysis

Approximately 80% to 100% of breast cancer survivors report Cancer-relatedfatigue (CRF) during and after active treatment. Exercise improves overall quality of life and CRF; however, the specific effects of training modalities have not been established yet. OBJECTIVE: To determine the pooled effects of supervised exercise interventions on CRF in breast cancer survivors. METHODS: Databases of Pubmed/MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, CENTRAL and CINAHL were searched until December 2013 without language restrictions. Risk of bias and methodological quality were evaluated with the PEDro score. Polled effects were calculated through a randomeffects model. Heterogeneity was measured with the Chi2 test (P<0.10) and I2statistics (I2>50%). Subgroup analysis evaluated secondary outcomes (i.e. quality of life, depression and body composition). Reporting bias was evaluated through visual appraisal of funnel plot. RESULTS: Nine high quality studies (n=1156) were included. Supervised aerobic exercise was statistically more effective than conventional care in improving CRF among breast cancer survivors (SMD= -0.37, 95%CI [-0.70, -0.40]), P<0.00001; I2= 80%. Resistance training produced significant improvements on CRF (SMD= -0.55, 95%CI [-1.09, -0.01]), P<0.00001; I2= 84%. We found significant differences for main domains of quality of life. There was no evidence of publication bias. CONCLUSIONS: Supervised exercise reduce CRF and must be implemented in rehabilitation setting treating breast cancer survivors. Further research is suggested.
 

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