Ten weeks of home-based exercise attenuates symptoms of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy in breast cancer patients

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if a structured, home-based exercise program was beneficial to reduce symptoms of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy and improve quality of life (QOL). A total of 50 women who are breast cancer survivors and are listed in the Breast Cancer Registry of Greater Cincinnati database were recruited by mail. Participants were initially asked to complete the McGill QOL questionnaire and the Leeds Assessment of Neuropathic Symptoms and Signs, before beginning a 10-week home-based exercise program. At the completion of the exercise program, subjects were asked again to complete the same two questionnaires. Pre- and post-intervention data were analyzed using a repeated measures ANOVA, at a significance level of α<0.05. Six individuals completed the investigation. Prior to the 10-week exercise program, participants described their pain as unpleasant skin sensations (Pre-HBEx, N=6), abnormally sensitive to touch (Pre-HBEx, N=6), and coming on suddenly in bursts for no apparent reason (Pre-HBEx, N=5). Following 10-weeks of exercise, participants reported experiencing less of these symptoms (Post-HBEx, N=3, 1, and 4 respectively; P=0.05). It was also determined that troublesome symptoms were significantly reduced after 10-weeks of home-based exercise (P=0.05).

Impact of physical exercise in cancer survivors during and after antineoplastic treatments

“…Also clinical trial conducted on patients investigated the role of exercise in the management of peripheral neuropathy [ 71 ]. Two studies that tested a structured 10-12 weeks exercise programs (one supervised, the other home-based) found that exercise training reduces CIPN symptoms, such as unpleasant skin sensations, sensitivity related to neuropathic pain and the experience of coming on suddenly in bursts for no apparent reason [ 87 , 88 ].…”

Role of Sonification and Rhythmic Auditory Cueing for Enhancing Gait Associated Deficits Induced by Neurotoxic Cancer Therapies: A Perspective on Auditory Neuroprosthetics

“…Developing home-based interventions, are efficient for population groups in developing countries where lack of proper medical exposure accounts for widespread cancer-related morbidity and mortality (23). Wonders et al (61) have also reported that home-based interventions can indeed impart beneficial effects in cancer survivors by reducing the peripheral neuropathic symptoms and enhancing the quality of life. We propose that in a home-based scenario patients can be taught by medical experts to utilize established smartphone rhythmic auditory cueing applications, such as Walkmate (119) to train gait effectively.…”

Physiotherapy for people with painful peripheral neuropathies: a narrative review of its efficacy and safety

“…This review was not limited to RCTs, but included 2 single-arm trials that did not meet our inclusion criteria. 20 , 76 Another recent integrative review concluded that exercise is “safe, feasible, and potentially effective for patients with CIPN” but that a definitive conclusion could not be drawn from the evidence available. 42 …”