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Yoga Therapy During Chemotherapy for Early-Stage and Locally Advanced Breast Cancer.

Integrative cancer therapies
January 1, 2022
Samantha K Greaney et al. (12 authors)
Randomized Controlled TrialJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tHuman StudyClinical
Study Details

Study Goal

The researchers aimed to determine the feasibility of personalized yoga therapy (including mindfulness) for weight maintenance and quality of life in women undergoing chemotherapy for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer.

Results Summary

Yoga therapy, which included mindfulness, was associated with weight maintenance (0.14% weight loss) compared to weight gain (2.63%) in the control group, and improved quality of life without adverse events.

Population

Women with early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer undergoing chemotherapy (mean age 51.6 years, 75.9% white, 24.1% people of color).

Effective Dosage

Three 30-minute yoga sessions weekly (including movement, breath work, mindfulness, and relaxation).

Duration

Mean 15.6 weeks.

Interactions

None mentioned.

Extracted Claims (12)
InterventionDirectionEndpointPopulationDosageImpactClaim #
personalized yoga therapy
decrease
body weight
women receiving treatment for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer
0.14%
lost
#1
personalized yoga therapy
increase
QOL
women undergoing chemotherapy for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer
-
beneficial for
#2
personalized yoga therapy
no change
weight maintenance
women undergoing chemotherapy for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer
-
beneficial for
#3
yoga
increase
QOL
women with breast cancer
-
improves
#4
yoga
decrease
fatigue
women with breast cancer
-
improves
#5
yoga
increase
mood
women with breast cancer
-
improves
#6
chemotherapy
decrease
quality of life (QOL)
patients with breast cancer
-
associated with decreased
#7
chemotherapy
increase
fatigue
patients with breast cancer
-
associated with
#8
chemotherapy
increase
depression
patients with breast cancer
-
associated with
#9
chemotherapy
increase
weight gain
patients with breast cancer
-
associated with
#10
weight gain
neutral
poorer prognosis
patients with breast cancer
-
associated with
#11
control arm (breast cancer treatment without yoga)
increase
body weight
women receiving treatment for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer
2.63%
gained
#12
Abstract

BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy is associated with decreased quality of life (QOL), fatigue, depression, and weight gain in patients with breast cancer. Weight gain is associated with poorer prognosis. Yoga improves QOL, fatigue, and mood in women with breast cancer but its effect on treatment-related weight gain has not been studied. The aim of this trial was to determine the feasibility of personalized yoga therapy in women receiving treatment for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer and assess its impact on weight gain. METHODS: Thirty women were randomized 1:1 to receive yoga therapy by a certified yoga therapist during treatment or a control group. Participants in the yoga arm were asked to complete three 30 minute yoga sessions weekly (which included movement, breath work, mindfulness, and relaxation) throughout adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy (N = 29) or endocrine (N = 1); the control arm received breast cancer treatment without yoga. For comparability between participants randomized to yoga therapy, the single patient treated with endocrine therapy was excluded from the analysis. Primary outcomes were feasibility and weight change. Additional outcomes were mood, fatigue, QOL, serum tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and C-reactive protein (CRP) as immune mediator biomarkers. RESULTS: Mean age was 51.6 years, 75.9% were white and 24.1% were people of color, reflecting the cancer center population. 80% had stage II-III disease. Enrollment was completed in 9 months. Compliance was lower than predicted; however, participants participated in on average 1.7 yoga sessions/week for a mean 15.6 weeks duration. There were no adverse events. Control arm participants gained on average 2.63% body weight during treatment while yoga participants lost 0.14% body weight (weight change = -0.36 in yoga arm vs. 2.89 in standard of care arm, Wilcoxon rank sum test CONCLUSION: This feasibility study suggests that personalized yoga therapy is beneficial for QOL and weight maintenance among women undergoing chemotherapy for early-stage or locally advanced breast cancer. Weight maintenance associated with yoga therapy may be of clinical significance in this population given the poorer prognosis associated with weight gain in breast cancer survivors. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NIH Clinicaltrials.gov #NCT03262831; August 25, 2017. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03262831.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
HumansFemaleMiddle AgedYogaBreast NeoplasmsQuality of LifeTumor Necrosis Factor-alphaFatigueBody WeightWeight Gain
Study Links
Quality Scores
Safety100
Efficacy80/10
Quality75/10
Citation Metrics
Total Citations9
Citations/Year3.0
Relative Citation Ratio1.11
NIH Percentile54%
Research Impact Scores
APT Score0.75
Weight Score2.52
Normalized Score0.87
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