Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Aug 8:2022:9032534.
doi: 10.1155/2022/9032534. eCollection 2022.

Effectiveness of Resistance Training on Fatigue in Patients Undergoing Cancer Treatment: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Lily Berríos Contreras  1 , Rodrigo Cuevas Cid  1 , Luz Alejandra Lorca  2 , Ivana Leão Ribeiro  1
Affiliations
Review

Effectiveness of Resistance Training on Fatigue in Patients Undergoing Cancer Treatment: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials

Lily Berríos Contreras et al. Int J Breast Cancer. .

Abstract

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of the resistance training to improve fatigue levels in people with cancer who are enrolled in adjuvant and/or neoadjuvant treatment.

Methods: MEDLINE, Web of Science, Embase, SPORTDiscus, LILACS, CENTRAL, and CINAHL databases were searched from May to December 7, 2021. Randomized clinical trials (RCT) that evaluate the effects of resistance training on fatigue levels in people undergoing cancer treatment were included. The PEDro scale was considered to assess methodological quality of studies, and the evidence was summarized through the GRADE system. The standardized average differences, effect size, and inverse variance model for meta-analysis were calculated.

Results: Fifteen RCT for qualitative synthesis and thirteen for meta-analysis were selected. A moderate to high level of evidence of resistance training was identified to improve fatigue in people undergoing cancer treatment. Meta-analysis showed a significant reduction in fatigue (SMD = -0.31, CI 95% = -0.58, -0.12, P = 0.001) after 10 to 35 sessions of resistance training.

Conclusion: The 10 to 35 sessions of resistance training are effective in reducing fatigue level in cancer patients who are undergoing cancer treatment and have a moderate level of quality evidence.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flow diagram for the systematic review.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Forest plot of 10- to 35-session muscle strength exercise training versus no intervention for fatigue levels.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Forest plot of greater than 36-session muscle strength exercise training versus no intervention for fatigue levels.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Funnel plot of eight studies that performed an intervention of 10 to 35 training sessions with muscular strength exercises.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Funnel plot of five studies that performed an intervention with more than 35 training sessions with muscular strength exercises.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Baskar R., Itahana K. Radiation therapy and cancer control in developing countries: can we save more lives. International Journal of Medical Sciences . 2017;14(1):13–17. doi: 10.7150/ijms.17288. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Canter R. J. Chemotherapy: does neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy improve outcomes? Surgical Oncology Clinics of North America . 2016;25(4):861–872. doi: 10.1016/j.soc.2016.05.013. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Allan C., Collins V., Frydenberg M., McLachlan R., Matthiesson K. Androgen deprivation therapy complications. Endocrine-Related Cancer . 2014;21:119–129. - PubMed
    1. Govindan R., Morgensztern D. Principios y práctica quirúrgica en el tratamiento oncológico in Manual Washington de Oncología . 3rd edition. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (United States: Philadelphia); 2016.
    1. Sundahl N., Duprez F., Ost P., De Neve W., Mareel M. Effects of radiation on the metastatic process. Molecular Medicine . 2018;24(1):p. 16. doi: 10.1186/s10020-018-0015-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources