Effect of therapeutic exercise on peak oxygen consumption in oncological population: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Cancer is amongst the leading causes of death worldwide. A total of 19.3 million new cases were diagnosed in 2020. Cardiovascular impairment is the second leading cause of death in patients undergoing cancer treatment. By measuring the maximum rate of oxygen consumption (VO₂max) in cancer patients, it is possible to estimate their cardiorespiratory health. This study aims to show how participants’ VO₂max increases with a therapeutic physical exercise programme.

Four databases were used for the literature search. Twenty-eight studies were analysed using the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of these studies was analysed with the PEDRO scale. The structural characteristics of the articles and the study variable (VO₂max) were studied.

The VO₂max of the 2558 patients studied presents some variations by gender, intervention and moment of measurement. For male-associated cancer, the increased VO₂max ranged between 1.5 and 4.2% after the intervention. The increase in the maximum VO₂max in female-associated cancer was between 0.3 and 53%. Different types of cancer for both genders presented an oscillation between 0.5 and 3.47%.

Therapeutic physical exercise is an efficient intervention to improve the VO₂max in oncology patients. The results show that a therapeutic physical exercise intervention lasting 12 weeks, 3 days per week with a moderate-vigorous intensity, increases the VO₂max in oncology patients.