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
. 2023 Jan;197(1):1-37.
doi: 10.1007/s10549-022-06759-1. Epub 2022 Oct 21.

A systematic review of multimodal prehabilitation in breast cancer

Kellie Toohey  1   2 , Maddison Hunter  3   4 , Karen McKinnon  5 , Tamara Casey  5 , Murray Turner  3 , Suzanne Taylor  5 , Catherine Paterson  3   4   6
Affiliations

A systematic review of multimodal prehabilitation in breast cancer

Kellie Toohey et al. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2023 Jan.

Abstract

Purpose: Breast cancer is the most prevalent malignancy in women. Prehabilitation may offer improvements in physical and psychological wellbeing among participants prior to treatment. This systematic review aimed to determine the efficacy of prehabilitation in participants diagnosed with breast cancer.

Methods: A systematic review was performed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Guidelines. Studies exploring the impact of prehabilitation in participants with breast cancer were included. Studies were assessed independently according to pre-eligibility criteria, with data extraction and methodological quality assessed in parallel.

Results: 3184 records were identified according to our search criteria, and 14 articles were included. Articles comprised of quantitative randomised controlled trials (n = 7), quantitative non-randomised studies (n = 5), a qualitative study (n = 1), and a mixed-method study (n = 1). The majority of selected studies completed exercise programs (n = 4) or had exercise components (n = 2), with two focusing on upper-limb exercise. Five articles reported complementary and alternative therapies (n = 5). Two articles reported smoking cessation (n = 2), with a single study reporting multi-modal prehabilitation (n = 1). Mostly, prehabilitation improved outcomes including physical function, quality of life, and psychosocial variables (P < 0.05). The qualitative data identified preferences for multimodal prehabilitation, compared to unimodal with an interest in receiving support for longer.

Conclusions: Prehabilitation for patients with breast cancer is an emerging research area that appears to improve outcomes, however, ensuring that adequate intervention timeframes, follow-up, and population groups should be considered for future investigations.

Implications for cancer survivors: The implementation of prehabilitation interventions for individuals diagnosed with breast cancer should be utilised by multidisciplinary teams to provide holistic care to patients as it has the potential to improve outcomes across the cancer care trajectory.

Keywords: Cancer care; Exercise; Nursing; Nutrition; Psychology; Wellness.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Search strategy and article selection process according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Guidelines [34]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bray F, Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Siegel RL, Torre LA, Jemal A. Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2018;68(6):394–424. doi: 10.3322/caac.21492. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cancer Australia. Breast Cancer. Cancer Australia: Australian Government; 2022. Available from: https://www.canceraustralia.gov.au/cancer-types/breast-cancer/statistics
    1. Vuksanovic D, Sanmugarajah J, Lunn D, Sawhney R, Eu K, Liang R. Unmet needs in breast cancer survivors are common, and multidisciplinary care is underutilised: the survivorship needs assessment project. Breast Cancer. 2021;28(2):289–297. doi: 10.1007/s12282-020-01156-2. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Arroyo OM, Vaíllo YA, López PM, Garrido MJG. Emotional distress and unmet supportive care needs in survivors of breast cancer beyond the end of primary treatment. Support Care Cancer. 2019;27(3):1049–1057. doi: 10.1007/s00520-018-4394-8. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Burg MA, Adorno G, Lopez ED, Loerzel V, Stein K, Wallace C, Sharma DKB. Current unmet needs of cancer survivors: analysis of open-ended responses to the American cancer society study of cancer survivors II. Cancer. 2015;121(4):623–630. doi: 10.1002/cncr.28951. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types