Physical exercise aids colon cancer survivors in living as long as healthy individuals.

Individuals diagnosed with colorectal cancer experience higher rates of premature mortality compared to the general population with similar characteristics, such as age and gender.

To determine whether physical exercise can mitigate this disparity, researchers analyzed data from two studies conducted after treatment for stage III colorectal cancer, involving 2,875 patients who reported their physical activity following surgery for tumor removal and chemotherapy. The researchers also examined data from a comparable general population sample from the National Center for Health Statistics.

For all participants, physical activity was quantified in metabolic equivalents (MET) per hours per week. (Medical guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, which equates to approximately 8.0 MET·hours per week).

In the analysis of the first study (named CALGB 89803), among patients who survived three years post-cancer treatment, those with physical activity levels <3.0 MET·hours per week had a three-year overall survival rate that was 17.1% lower than that of the corresponding general population, whereas those with physical activity levels ≥18.0 MET·hours per week had a three-year overall survival rate that was only 3.5% lower than that of the corresponding general population.

In the second study (CALGB 80702), among patients who survived three years, those with activity levels <3.0 and ≥18.0 MET·hours per week had subsequent three-year overall survival rates that were 10.8% and 4.4% lower than the comparable general population, respectively.

In a combined analysis of both studies, among 1,908 patients who were alive and had no cancer recurrence by the third year, those engaging in physical activity <3.0 and ≥18.0 MET·hours per week had subsequent three-year overall survival rates that were 3.1% lower and 2.9% higher than the overall population, respectively.

Thus, colorectal cancer survivors who were free from tumors by the third year and regularly exercised achieved even better subsequent survival rates than those in the comparable general population.

“This new information will help colorectal cancer patients understand that factors they can control — their level of physical activity — can significantly impact their long-term prognosis,” said lead author Justin C. Brown, PhD, a researcher at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center and the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center.

“Additionally, healthcare professionals and policymakers are constantly seeking new ways to communicate the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. Quantifying how physical activity may enable a colorectal cancer patient to live as long as their friends and family without cancer could provide straightforward yet powerful information to help everyone appreciate the health benefits of physical activity.”