Breast cancer victims who are undergoing radiation therapy could fight fatigue by practicing yoga.
Researchers found stretching exercises combated fatigue in these patients, but incorporating "controlled breathing, meditation and relaxation techniques" improved their ability to participate in everyday activities, a University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center news release reported.
The researchers compared patients who participated in yoga with a group that simply performed stretching exercises.
"Combining mind and body practices that are part of yoga clearly have tremendous potential to help patients manage the psychosocial and physical difficulties associated with treatment and life after cancer, beyond the benefits of simple stretching," Lorenzo Cohen, Ph.D., professor and director of the Integrative Medicine Program at MD Anderson, said in the news release.
Researchers looked at 191 women undergoing radiation for breast cancer, and split them into three groups: a yoga group; a stretching group; and a group that was not given physical instructions.
The participants were asked to report on their daily quality of life including fatigue and depression levels as well as their ability to "find meaning in the illness."
The women who participated in yoga showed the steepest decline in a stress hormone called cortisol; higher levels of this hormone have been linked to worse breast cancer outcomes.
After the radiation treatments had ended only the women in the two exercise groups reported a reduction in fatigue. Six months later the women who had practiced yoga reported better overall health.
The women who had practiced yoga were also more likely to find a sense of meaning in their illness.
"The transition from active therapy back to everyday life can be very stressful as patients no longer receive the same level of medical care and attention. Teaching patients a mind-body technique like yoga as a coping skill can make the transition less difficult," Cohen said.
