The primary aim of this study was to examine the association between physical activity and quality of life (QoL) in cancer patients receiving palliative care. Fifty advanced cancer patients aged 18 years or older with clinician-estimated life expectancy of 3–12 months and Palliative Performance Status Scale scores greater than 30% were recruited from an outpatient palliative care clinic and palliative home care. Participants completed a cross-sectional survey by means of face-to-face interview assessing self-reported QoL (McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire [MQOL]), self-reported physical function (Late-Life Function and Disability Instrument), symptoms (Edmonton Symptom Assessment System), and physical activity behavior. Seventy-six percent (38 of 50) of the participants were deceased at the time of data analysis, with a median survival of 104 days from time of survey to time of death. Walking was the most common reported physical activity. Analyses of variance indicated that participants who reported walking more than 30 minutes per day also reported higher existential subscores (±0.8 [95% CI, 0.0–1.5]; P = 0.045), support subscores (±0.7 [95% CI, 0.1–1.4]; P = 0.027), and total scores (±0.5 [95% CI, 0.0–0.9]; P = 0.046) on the MQOL. There were no significant differences for self-reported physical function or symptoms. Our findings show a significant positive association between physical activity and QoL scores in this sample of patients with advanced cancer. A pilot intervention trial testing the causal effects of physical activity on QoL in cancer patients receiving palliative care is warranted.
Key Words
Physical activity
quality of life
palliative care
cancer
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This study was funded by Operating Grant MOP-84424 from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Sonya Lowe is supported by a full-time Clinical Fellowship Award from the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research. Kerry Courneya is supported by the Canada Research Chairs Program as well as a Research Team Grant from the National Cancer Institute of Canada, with funds from the Canadian Cancer Society and the Sociobehavioral Cancer Research Network.