Exercise may not prevent early breast cancer
Monday March 4th, 2013
Physical exercise may not protect against the development of breast cancer - but may help prevent its spread, according to a major European study.
The
study comes from research involving nearly 300,000 women in ten countries.
During 11 years of the project, some 1,059 women were diagnosed with a type of breast cancer known as "in situ." or non-invasive. This means a tumour has not spread into the breast nor has secondary cancer spread into the body.
The disease can become invasive and dangerous.
The researchers found no link between the development of non-invasive cancer and any kind of exercise.
However an earlier analysis, last year, found that being physically active during the menopause was linked to a 14% reduced risk of a woman developing invasive cancer.
Researcher María José Sánchez Pérez, director of the Granada Cancer Registry, Spain, said it was possible being physically active only provided protection against later stages of cancer.
She added: "Thanks to sufficient evidence, the risk factors associated with breast cancer are obesity in menopausal women and alcohol consumption, whereas physical activity and breastfeeding provide protection against the development of this cancer."
Prospective study on physical activity and risk of
in situ breast cancer.
Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012 Dec; 21(12):2209-19. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-12-0961.
Physical activity and risk of breast cancer overall and by hormone receptor status: The European prospective investigation into cancer and nutrition. Int J Cancer. 2013 Apr 1;132(7):1667-78. doi: 10.1002/ijc.27778. doi: 10.1002/ijc.27778 [abstract]
Tags: Cancer | Europe | Fitness | Women's Health & Gynaecology
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