Optitrain: a Randomised Controlled Exercise Trial for Women with Breast Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy

Overview

Journal BMC Cancer

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialty Oncology

Date 2017 Feb 8

PMID 28166765

Citations 19

Authors

Y Wengstrom

K A Bolam

S Mijwel

C J Sundberg

M Backman

M Browall

J Norrbom

H Rundqvist

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Women with breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy suffer from a range of detrimental disease and treatment related side-effects. Exercise has shown to be able to counter some of these side-effects and improve physical function as well as quality of life. The primary aim of the study is to investigate and compare the effects of two different exercise regimens on the primary outcome cancer-related fatigue and the secondary outcomes muscle strength, function and structure, cardiovascular fitness, systemic inflammation, skeletal muscle gene activity, health related quality of life, pain, disease and treatment-related symptoms in women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy. The second aim is to examine if any effects are sustained 1, 2, and 5 years following the completion of the intervention and to monitor return to work, recurrence and survival. The third aim of the study is to examine the effect of attendance and adherence rates on the effects of the exercise programme.

Methods: This study is a randomised controlled trial including 240 women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy in Stockholm, Sweden. The participants are randomly allocated to either: group 1: Aerobic training, group 2: Combined resistance and aerobic training, or group 3: usual care (control group). During the 5-year follow-up period, participants in the exercise groups will receive a physical activity prescription. Measurements for endpoints will take place at baseline, after 16 weeks (end of intervention) as well as after 1, 2 and 5 years.

Discussion: This randomised controlled trial will generate substantial information regarding the effects of different types of exercise on the health of patients with breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy. We expect that dissemination of the knowledge gained from this study will contribute to developing effective long term strategies to improve the physical and psychosocial health of breast cancer survivors.

Trial Registration: OptiTrain - Optimal Training Women with Breast Cancer (OptiTrain), NCT02522260 ; Registration: June 9, 2015, Last updated version Feb 29, 2016. Retrospectively registered.

Citing Articles

Cardiovascular training for fatigue in people with cancer.

Wagner C, Ernst M, Cryns N, Oeser A, Messer S, Wender A Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2025; 2:CD015517.

PMID: 39976199 PMC: 11840886. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD015517.

Experiences of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer participating in a supervised exercise intervention during chemotherapy.

Brouwer C, Tusscher M, de Roos B, Gootjes E, Buffart T, Versteeg K Support Care Cancer. 2025; 33(2):82.

PMID: 39779537 PMC: 11711133. DOI: 10.1007/s00520-024-09101-1.

Effectiveness of Aerobic Training for Adverse Symptoms Related to Chemotherapy During Treatment: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial With Cost-Effectiveness Assessment.

Selles W, Miyamoto G, Santos E, Carmo C, Moura G, Santos G JMIR Res Protoc. 2024; 13:e60828.

PMID: 39163116 PMC: 11372328. DOI: 10.2196/60828.

Restoring Skeletal Muscle Health through Exercise in Breast Cancer Patients and after Receiving Chemotherapy.

Aires I, Duarte J, Vitorino R, Moreira-Goncalves D, Oliveira P, Ferreira R Int J Mol Sci. 2024; 25(14).

PMID: 39062775 PMC: 11277416. DOI: 10.3390/ijms25147533.

Five-year follow-up of the OptiTrain trial on concurrent resistance and high-intensity interval training during chemotherapy for patients with breast cancer.

Anandavadivelan P, Mijwel S, Wiklander M, Kjoe P, Luijendijk M, Bergh J Sci Rep. 2024; 14(1):15333.

PMID: 38961182 PMC: 11222517. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-65436-z.

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