Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review
<i>Background:</i> A cancer diagnosis and its treatment often disrupt a child’s and adolescent’s normal level of physical activity, which plays a vital role in their development and health. They are therefore often less physically active during treatment than before the diagnosis or comp...
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MDPI AG
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Current Oncology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/4/234 |
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| author | Nadja Battanta Krystyna Lange Sabine V. Kesting Daniela Marx-Berger Philip Heesen Hannah Ober Aron Onerup Saskia M. F. Pluijm Eva Scheler Emma J. Verwaaijen Katrin Scheinemann Maria Otth |
| author_facet | Nadja Battanta Krystyna Lange Sabine V. Kesting Daniela Marx-Berger Philip Heesen Hannah Ober Aron Onerup Saskia M. F. Pluijm Eva Scheler Emma J. Verwaaijen Katrin Scheinemann Maria Otth |
| author_sort | Nadja Battanta |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <i>Background:</i> A cancer diagnosis and its treatment often disrupt a child’s and adolescent’s normal level of physical activity, which plays a vital role in their development and health. They are therefore often less physically active during treatment than before the diagnosis or compared to healthy peers. Today, there is no comprehensive overview of the safety, feasibility, clinical effectiveness, and potentially long-lasting impact of physical activity (PA) interventions in this population. <i>Methods:</i> We conducted a systematic review in PubMed according to PRISMA guidelines to evaluate studies on PA interventions during cancer treatment in children and adolescents up to 25 years of age. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute’s critical appraisal tools to assess the risk of bias. Due to the heterogeneity in interventions and outcomes, we used descriptive approaches only to present the results. <i>Results</i>: Half of the 21 included studies were randomized controlled trials (10/21). PA interventions were found to be safe and feasible when tailored to the patient’s age, treatment phase, and clinical condition. Most studies reported improvements in physical fitness, strength, and quality of life, with some reductions in fatigue. Variability in interventions and outcomes, along with small sample sizes and heterogeneous patient populations, made it difficult to draw clear conclusions. <i>Conclusions</i>: PA appears to be a feasible and, in terms of injuries, safe adjunct to cancer treatment in children and adolescents. Despite promising trends, further large-scale, multicenter trials with standardized protocols are needed to better establish the long-term benefits and optimal interventions. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-91df5fb04148430385a50fa8ff6344af |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1198-0052 1718-7729 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Current Oncology |
| spelling | doaj-art-91df5fb04148430385a50fa8ff6344af2025-08-20T02:28:12ZengMDPI AGCurrent Oncology1198-00521718-77292025-04-0132423410.3390/curroncol32040234Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic ReviewNadja Battanta0Krystyna Lange1Sabine V. Kesting2Daniela Marx-Berger3Philip Heesen4Hannah Ober5Aron Onerup6Saskia M. F. Pluijm7Eva Scheler8Emma J. Verwaaijen9Katrin Scheinemann10Maria Otth11Division of Oncology/Hematology, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandDivision of Oncology/Hematology, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandDepartment of Pediatrics, German Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DZKJ), Partner Site Munich, TUM School of Medicine and Health, Technical University of Munich, 80804 Munich, GermanyDivision of Sportsmedicine, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandFaculty of Medicine, University of Zurich, 8091 Zurich, SwitzerlandDivision of Oncology/Hematology, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandDepartment of Pediatrics, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 40530 Gothenburg, SwedenPrincess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, 3584 CS Utrecht, The NetherlandsDepartment of Cardiology, Cantonal Hospital St. Gallen, 9007 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandPrincess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, 3584 CS Utrecht, The NetherlandsDivision of Oncology/Hematology, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, SwitzerlandDivision of Oncology/Hematology, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Switzerland, 9006 St. Gallen, Switzerland<i>Background:</i> A cancer diagnosis and its treatment often disrupt a child’s and adolescent’s normal level of physical activity, which plays a vital role in their development and health. They are therefore often less physically active during treatment than before the diagnosis or compared to healthy peers. Today, there is no comprehensive overview of the safety, feasibility, clinical effectiveness, and potentially long-lasting impact of physical activity (PA) interventions in this population. <i>Methods:</i> We conducted a systematic review in PubMed according to PRISMA guidelines to evaluate studies on PA interventions during cancer treatment in children and adolescents up to 25 years of age. We used the Joanna Briggs Institute’s critical appraisal tools to assess the risk of bias. Due to the heterogeneity in interventions and outcomes, we used descriptive approaches only to present the results. <i>Results</i>: Half of the 21 included studies were randomized controlled trials (10/21). PA interventions were found to be safe and feasible when tailored to the patient’s age, treatment phase, and clinical condition. Most studies reported improvements in physical fitness, strength, and quality of life, with some reductions in fatigue. Variability in interventions and outcomes, along with small sample sizes and heterogeneous patient populations, made it difficult to draw clear conclusions. <i>Conclusions</i>: PA appears to be a feasible and, in terms of injuries, safe adjunct to cancer treatment in children and adolescents. Despite promising trends, further large-scale, multicenter trials with standardized protocols are needed to better establish the long-term benefits and optimal interventions.https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/4/234childhood cancertreatmentexercise interventionphysical activityquality of lifestrength |
| spellingShingle | Nadja Battanta Krystyna Lange Sabine V. Kesting Daniela Marx-Berger Philip Heesen Hannah Ober Aron Onerup Saskia M. F. Pluijm Eva Scheler Emma J. Verwaaijen Katrin Scheinemann Maria Otth Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review Current Oncology childhood cancer treatment exercise intervention physical activity quality of life strength |
| title | Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review |
| title_full | Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review |
| title_fullStr | Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review |
| title_short | Supervised Physical Activity Interventions in Children and Adolescents with Cancer Undergoing Treatment—A Systematic Review |
| title_sort | supervised physical activity interventions in children and adolescents with cancer undergoing treatment a systematic review |
| topic | childhood cancer treatment exercise intervention physical activity quality of life strength |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/32/4/234 |
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