Postdiagnosis Physical Activity: Association With Long-Term Fatigue and Sleep Disturbance in Older Adult Breast Cancer Survivors.
Alexi Vasbinder, Kerryn W Reding, Di Wang and 6 others
PMID 32678375WHAT IT FOUND
Older breast cancer survivors who reported more physical activity after diagnosis had less long-term fatigue.
Those exceeding 1,000 MET minutes per week were less likely to report fatigue. No clear association with sleep disturbance was found.
Key findings
01For each additional 60 MET minutes per week of reported physical activity, mean fatigue score was 0.22 points higher, indicating less fatigue.
02Survivors exceeding 1,000 MET minutes per week had 72% lower odds of fatigue than those below 500 MET minutes per week.
03No clear association was found between physical activity and sleep disturbance.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
This was an observational study, not a randomised trial, so it cannot show that physical activity caused lower fatigue. Physical activity and symptoms were self-reported, which can introduce measurement error. Physical activity was measured once, years after diagnosis, and fatigue and sleep were measured about eight years later, so current activity may not reflect long-term behaviour. Pretreatment fatigue and other residual confounders could not be adequately assessed, and reverse causality is possible because women with less fatigue may be more able to be active. The sample was 94% White and aged 65 or older, so it may not apply to younger or more diverse survivors. The measure mainly captured aerobic activity and did not clearly assess balance or strength training. Sleep disturbance was measured with a tool that may not be validated for cancer survivors.
Declared interests
No author conflicts of interest are stated in the supplied text. The paper is tagged as Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 72% lower odds as proof that increasing exercise reduces fatigue. This was an observational study with self-reported activity, long gaps between measurements, and possible reverse causality.