Physical activity in advanced cancer patients: a systematic review protocol

Abstract

BackgroundProgressive, incurable cancer is associated with increased fatigue, increased muscle weakness, and reduced physical functioning, all of which negatively impact quality of life. Physical activity has demonstrated benefits on cancer-related fatigue and physical functioning in early-stage cancer patients; however, its impact on these outcomes in end-stage cancer has not been established. The aim of this systematic review is to determine the potential benefits, harms, and effects of physical activity interventions on quality of life outcomes in advanced cancer patients.Methods/designA systematic review of peer-reviewed literature on physical activity in advanced cancer patients will be undertaken. Empirical quantitative studies will be considered for inclusion if they present interventional or observational data on physical activity in advanced cancer patients. Searches will be conducted in the following electronic databases: CINAHL; CIRRIE Database of International Rehabilitation Research; Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (CDSR); Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects (DARE); Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL); EMBASE; MEDLINE; PEDro: the Physiotherapy Evidence Database; PQDT; PsycInfo; PubMed; REHABDATA; Scopus; SPORTDiscus; and Web of Science, to identify relevant studies of interest. Additional strategies to identify relevant studies will include citation searches and evaluation of reference lists of included articles. Titles, abstracts, and keywords of identified studies from the search strategies will be screened for inclusion criteria. Two independent reviewers will conduct quality appraisal using the Effective Public Health Practice Project Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies (EPHPP) and the Cochrane risk of bias tool. A descriptive summary of included studies will describe the study designs, participant and activity characteristics, and objective and patient-reported outcomes.DiscussionThis systematic review will summarize the current evidence base on physical activity interventions in advanced cancer patients. The findings from this systematic review will identify gaps to be explored by future research studies and inform future practice guideline development of physical activity interventions in advanced cancer patients.Systematic review registrationPROSPERO CRD42015026281Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13643-016-0220-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Supervised Physical Rehabilitation in the Treatment of Patients with Advanced Cancer: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

“…Therefore, the usefulness of supervised rehabilitation was difficult to generalize for patients with advanced cancer. 6 34 35 36 Second, only physical rehabilitation such as resistance or aerobic exercise that was structured or supported by health professionals in hospital related facilities were included in this review. Although some studies have reported the effectiveness of exercise on physical function or QOL in a supervised setting, these were not limited to patients with advanced cancer.…”

The Value of Rehabilitation Medicine for Patients Receiving Palliative Care

“…7 In a population of patients with cancer receiving palliative care, increased self-reported physical activity and walking over 30 minutes daily were associated with an improved QOL. 8 Simple interventions such as recommending and helping implement daily walking in patients with advanced disease can positively benefit their daily function.…”

Symptom-based interventions to promote quality survivorship

“…32 Exercise was also found to be feasible in a sample of patients with advanced cancers, some of which were glioblastoma; exercise improved quality of life at end-of-life as well. 33 Lack of randomized controlled trials in the brain tumor population does not preclude prescribing exercise as an intervention to prevent fatigue and other tumor-and treatment-related problems. Whether exercise should be incorporated into the plan of care during and after cancer treatment is beyond discussion, and research should focus on how best to implement exercise interventions.…”

“…41 Subjective reports require supportive care even if cognitive impairment is not borne out in clinical assessment. 33,41 Decline in objective measures of cognitive function has been found to precede MRI changes indicative of progression. 41 Cognitive function, specifically verbal memory, has been found to be predictive of survival as well.…”