A large international study has found that regular physical activity is associated with significantly lower risk of death among survivors of several cancer types, and that even modest exercise may provide meaningful benefits.
Published in JAMA Network Open, the research pooled data from six long-term health studies involving more than 17,000 survivors of seven cancers: bladder, endometrial, kidney, lung, oral, ovarian, and rectal. Participants were followed for an average of 11 years, with activity levels assessed both before diagnosis and approximately 2.8 years after.
After adjusting for age, sex, smoking status, and cancer stage, the findings indicated that physical activity was associated with reduced mortality across several cancer types. Survivors of oral and lung cancers showed the largest observed reductions, followed by those with endometrial, bladder, and rectal cancers. Kidney and ovarian cancer survivors did not show statistically significant benefits in the analysis.
One notable finding was that prior inactivity did not appear to limit the potential benefit. Lung and rectal cancer survivors who were inactive before diagnosis but became more active afterwards showed a lower risk of death compared to those who remained sedentary. Additionally, for bladder, endometrial, and lung cancers, even activity levels below the standard 150-minute-per-week guideline appeared to offer some benefit over no activity at all.
The authors suggest that health care professionals consider promoting physical activity as part of post-diagnosis care for people living with and beyond cancer.
As an observational study, it cannot establish causation, and further research is needed to understand better how activity levels interact with treatment, cancer stage, and individual health status.
Source: Medical Express (2026)
