When it comes to managing health and improving outcomes for breast cancer patients, research is showing a balanced diet and regular exercise play crucial roles.
Exercise offers numerous physical and psychological benefits, including help with managing treatment-related side effects such as fatigue, depression and anxiety.
Along with this, a well-structured diet helps support the body’s healing processes, enhances energy levels and boosts overall wellbeing.
“It’s not just about surviving cancer, it’s about thriving despite a cancer diagnosis,” says Dr Di Adams, an experienced medical oncologist.
Dr Adams says that when it comes to implementing good nutrition and regular exercise as a breast cancer patient, the key thing to remember is “it’s never too late” but implementing a plan earlier, rather than later, can help improve outcomes.
Nutrition
Nutrients found in a well-structured diet can aid in recovery and improve the body’s resilience against cancer. That’s why experts recommend emphasising a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and healthy fats.
Dr Adams points out that Vitamin D, for example, is crucial for bone and muscle health, and yet, she says “we do not get enough of it” and she “usually finds [her] patients are deficient [in Vitamin D]”.
“Avoid nutrient poor, energy rich foods – sugar, sweetened beverages and foods– especially if you have gone into menopause through your treatment,” she recommends, adding that it can be hard to reverse the weight gain that comes from this kind of diet.
Maintaining a healthy weight is important, as obesity has been linked to an increased risk of cancer recurrence.
Exercise
Along with a nutrient-rich diet, it’s recommended that breast cancer patients incorporate moderate physical activity into their daily routines to help maintain a healthy weight. This kind of exercise could come in the form of walking, swimming or cycling, amongst other things.
“Breast cancer is the poster child of the benefits of exercise to improve outcomes,” says Dr Adams, noting that evidence her team has published shows exercise does reduce the risk of breast cancer in many subtypes of the disease.
For patients who aren’t sure where to begin in their exercise journey, Dr Adams recommends slowly increasing activity levels. If you are planning to walk routinely, this could look like walking an extra block each time you head out the door.
It could also be helpful to commit to a routine exercise time, or to exercise with a friend who can keep you accountable.
No matter what your history or level of experience with regular exercise, Dr Adams says it’s important to ask your doctor or nurse for more information.
“If possible, have your own personalised plan developed for you,” she says. “Breast cancer treatments are so varied, plus we are not all built the same, and [we] have different medical histories.”
Reducing treatment side effects
An exercise physiologist, Dr Eva Zopf has worked in exercise oncology research for over 10-years and has witnessed many beneficial effects of exercise in people diagnosed with breast cancer, including reductions in treatment-related side-effects like fatigue, peripheral neuropathies and cognitive function.
“We also see that patients experience improvements in physical fitness and muscle strength, making it easier for them to accomplish everyday activities and engage in their social life,” Dr Zopf says.
“Notably, we see these benefits both during and after cancer treatment and in patients with different disease stages.”
Recently, Dr Zopf and her team completed a large international study involving 350 patients with metastatic breast cancer. Participants who took part in a supervised exercise program, involving aerobic (e.g. cycling), resistance (e.g. lifting weights) and balance training, for 9-months, experienced beneficial effects on quality of life, fatigue, pain, breathlessness and many other clinically relevant outcomes, aside from improvements in physical fitness and function.
Highlighting the significance of this research into the benefits of traditional aerobic and resistance exercise programs, Dr Zopf says other forms of exercise can also provide benefits for breast cancer patients.
“I have also been involved in other exercise interventions for breast cancer patients, such as a 6-week (800km) hike through Spain or hydrotherapy/aquatic exercises, which have positively impacted patients,” she says.
“So, while certain interventions might elicit greater effects than others, there are a whole range of physical activities or exercise options that patients will benefit from and it also depends on what the patient wants to achieve or needs support with.”
Join Breast Cancer Trials on Thursday 14th November, from 5-6:30pm (AEDT), for a free online Q&A, where leading researchers and women with a history of breast cancer will discuss the role and impact of diet and exercise on breast cancer. The session will be moderated by author and journalist Annabel Crabb. To register click here.