Exercise Training as Therapy for Cancer-Induced Cardiac Cachexia

Abstract

Cancer-induced cardiac cachexia is an insidious syndrome with a dramatic impact on a patient's quality of life and survival. Since exercise training provides several cardiovascular benefits in both physiological and pathological conditions (e.g., athletes and patients with heart failure, respectively), its use as a preventive and/or therapeutic tool for cancer-induced cardiac cachexia has been hypothesized. Existing evidence on the effects of exercise training in this particular setting is limited, but points towards a beneficial outcome. We report the current knowledge on cancer-induced cardiac cachexia and discuss the molecular pathways that may be modulated by exercise training in this setting, providing insights into possible future roads of study, namely in stem cell research and cardiac regeneration.

Keywords: cancer; cardiac remodeling; physical activity; prevention; therapy.