ABSTRACT
Background : Children and adolescents with cancer are at risk of
a poor health-related quality of life. Exercise interventions to enhance
movement may be a valid strategy for managing some symptoms, including
fatigue.
Methods: Forty-four consecutive patients (20 females; aged 5-21
years old, median 15.5 years), without any contraindications
significantly limiting their movements were invited to join an
in-hospital 6-week supervised exercise program, and asked afterwards to
complete the PedsQL-4.0 quality of life Generic Core Scales and the
PedsQL Multidimensional
Fatigue Scale. The program consisted of personalized workout sessions of
aerobic, resistance and flexibility exercises. The results obtained on
the scales were compared between patients who engaged in the exercise
program (GYM group, n =21) and those who did not (No-GYM,n =23), with the aim of examining the different dimensions of
health-related quality of life (physical, emotional, cognitive, social)
and fatigue (general, sleep/rest, cognitive) comparing the two groups.
Results: For 43 of 44 patients, being diagnosed with cancer
initially prompted a drop-out from previous physical exercise or sports
routines despite no contraindications to their continuation. After 6
weeks, the scores for patients in the GYM group showed a statistically
significant better perceived emotional functioning, and a possible
indication of improved social functioning compared with the No-GYM
group.
Conclusion: These findings suggest that to exercise improves
the satisfaction of children and adolescents with cancer with their
physical, mental and social functioning. It is worth further
investigating the value of systematically including exercise workouts in
their routine cancer practices.