Abstract :
[en] Background :
Breast cancer is the most frequent cancer in women, affecting 8 women out of 100. With early detection and improved treatments, the number of deaths linked to this disease has declined. However, the disease and its treatments are at the origin of many undesirable side effects such as fatigue, anxiety, weight gain and decreased physical fitness. The objective of this study is to determine the physical benefits of a multidisciplinary rehabilitation program among women treated for breast cancer (on average six months after the end of the adjuvant radiotherapy or chimiotherapy).
Material and methods :
122 patients were included into a control group (n = 61) and a treated group (n = 61). All participants were submitted to evaluations before the beginning of the trial and after three months. These evaluations included functional assessments (a maximal incremental exercise protocol on a cycle ergometer, flexibility by Sit and Reach Test and walking distance by Six-Minute Walk Test), anthropometric and body composition measurements (Body Mass Index and body fat percentage) and different questionnaires on quality of life, anxiety and other symptoms related to cancer. The control group has received no intervention unlike the treated group that received a three-month rehabilitation including supervised physical training (90 min) with three times a week and various psycho-educational sessions (120 min) once a week.
Results :
After three months, maximal oxygen consumption (p < 0,0001), maximal aerobic power (p < 0,0001), peak of ventilation (p < 0,0001) and time to exhaustion (p = 0,0055) during the maximal incremental exercise protocol improve significantly in the treated group. This observation also applies to flexibility (p < 0,0001), walking distance in six minutes (p < 0,0001) and different physical and psychological parameters obtained through questionnaires. In the control group, these improvements do not appear and a significant increase in body mass index (p = 0,032) and body fat percentage (p = 0,034) is observed while these data remain constant in the treated group.
Conclusions :
This study shows the feasibility and physical benefits of such a multidisciplinary oncological rehabilitation program in women after their treatments for breast cancer. Additional studies are needed to know the optimal time of beginning (during treatments or after them) and the optimal management time for this support.
