Many Cancer Survivors Are Overweight and Sedentary: Study (HealthDay)

MONDAY, April 21 (HealthDay News) -- A healthy lifestyle may helpcancer survivors prevent recurrence of the disease and live longer, yetcancer survivors have rates of obesity and physical inactivity similar tothose of the general population, according to new research.

The study, published in the June 1 issue of Cancer, found thatless than one-quarter of cancer survivors were regularly physicallyactive, and more than 18 percent were obese.

"We thought this might be a time when people would be particularlymotivated to exercise and control weight. But, a cancer diagnosis andtreatment didn't seem to stimulate behavior change," said the study's leadauthor, Kerry Courneya, a professor and Canada Research Chair at theUniversity of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada.

What's troubling is that maintaining a healthy weight and gettingregular physical exercise may be even more crucial for cancer survivorsthan it is for the general public. Some studies have suggested thatphysical activity and losing weight may help prevent cancer recurrence andimprove survival odds.

Additionally, some research suggests that exercise can help reducefatigue, improve physical functioning and improve quality of life for somecancer survivors.

For the study, Courneya and his colleagues gathered data from theCanadian Community Health Survey. This survey contains information basedon interviews of more than 114,000 people in Canada. Details of cancerhistory, weight, height and physical activity were all supplied by therespondents.

General population statistics for Canada find that 37 percent of peopleare overweight, and 22 percent are obese, according to backgroundinformation in the study.

Fewer than 22 percent of cancer survivors reported being physicallyactive. The lowest rates of physical activity were found among colorectalcancer survivors, breast cancer survivors and female survivors ofmelanoma.

Thirty-four percent of cancer survivors were overweight, and almost onein five was obese.

Obese breast cancer survivors were only about half as likely to bephysically active as obese women who hadn't had cancer, a finding that'sparticularly worrisome, because poor outcomes in breast cancer have beenassociated with obesity and the often accompanying sedentary lifestyle.

"We really didn't know which way the research would go. Cancersurvivors may be more motivated at the time of their diagnosis to makechanges, but others point out that it's a very stressful time that cantake a toll and lead to the opposite effect," Courneya said.

Kevin Stein, director of Quality of Life Research at the AmericanCancer Society, said, "This is an important finding to underscore the factthat cancer survivors need to pay attention to their health. You'vedodged a bullet for the time being, but cancer survivors are actually atan increased risk for a number of health conditions, including cancerrecurrence.

"There is a teachable moment when someone is diagnosed. It's theperfect opportunity to say, 'We all need to eat healthy and exercise, butit's even more important for you as a cancer survivor,' " he said.

Courneya added: "This is something they can do for themselves to helpbeat cancer and improve quality of life. The cancer community needs to getmore involved in the promotion of healthy lifestyles in cancer patients.Maybe a program something like cardiac rehabilitation. The cancercommunity's been slower to realize the importance of lifestyle changesafter cancer diagnosis."

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