Optimal Exercise Dose for Improving Multidimensional Health Outcomes in Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression.
Jingyu Wang, Yuxuan He, Zhouluo Wang et al.
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In 30 seconds
This systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression examined exercise dose-response relationships in colorectal cancer patients. It included 26 randomized controlled trials involving 1,731 patients and synthesized 266 effect sizes across six health-outcome domains. Exercise was associated with significant improvements in cardiorespiratory fitness (ES = 0.35, p < 0.01) and muscular fitness (ES = 0.45, p < 0.01). Analyses suggested threshold effects, with maximal fitness gains requiring sustained moderate-to-high intensity exercise. Prehabilitation interventions appeared most effective; during active treatment, outcomes followed a decline-rebound pattern.
Key findings
- Cardiorespiratory fitness improved with exercise (ES = 0.35, p < 0.01).
- Muscular fitness improved with exercise (ES = 0.45, p < 0.01).
- Regression analyses indicated threshold effects for both fitness outcomes, with maximal gains requiring sustained moderate-to-high intensity exercise.
- Prehabilitation appeared most effective, while interventions during active treatment showed a decline-rebound trend over time.
Why it matters
The findings suggest that exercise effects in colorectal cancer may depend on both dose and treatment timing, rather than exercise being a uniform intervention. Fitness improvements and the reported treatment-phase patterns can inform how exercise programmes are considered across the care pathway, while the evidence remains based on trial synthesis and does not establish a single optimal prescription for every patient.
What to keep in mind
The abstract does not report the certainty of evidence or detailed risk-of-bias results, limiting assessment of how robust the pooled findings are.