The Effect of Post-operative Exercise in Colorectal Cancer Patients: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) Study

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of post-operative exercise on body composition, psychological factors, time to flatus and length of hospital stay in stage 1~3 colorectal cancer patients. Methods: A total of 35 post surgery patients were recruited and randomly assigned to the exercise or controlled group. Participants in the exercise group exercised twice a day while participants in the control group followed the clinical pathways (CP). Results: A total of 25 participants completed the trial. Post-operative exercise resulted in a clinically meaningful, but statistically insignificant reduction in body weight (Exercise: -1.10±1.63 kg vs. CP: -0.63±1.16 kg; p=.111), fat mass (Exercise: -1.43±0.95 kg vs. CP: 0.64±4.29 kg; p=.100). When participants’ body composition were compared to their baseline values at the baseline, only the exercise group experienced a significant reduction in body weight, body mass index (BMI) and fat mass. In addition, post-operative exercise significantly improved health related quality of life (Exercise: 2.27±2.08 vs CP: -12.82±22.47; p=.008). However, there was no difference in time to flatus and the length of hospital stay between groups. Conclusion: The current pilot study suggests that the post-operative exercise program was safe and produced for health related quality of life improvements in colorectal cancer patients.