How to guide lung cancer patients in rehabilitation training?

  With the development of targeted therapy in recent years, the survival period of lung cancer patients has been prolonged, and more and more patients are in the state of living with tumor. In addition to prolonging life, reducing respiratory symptoms and improving quality of life are gradually becoming topics of concern for many doctors and patients.  1.Is rehabilitation training safe?  Many lung cancer patients and family members will actively reduce patients’ daily activities in order to reduce their respiratory symptoms. In fact, moderate rehabilitation training is safe for most perioperative lung cancer patients and patients with advanced disease. Of course, the form, intensity and duration of exercise should be jointly developed by the patient and the doctor, and continuously adjusted according to the patient’s tolerance.  2.Can it benefit patients?  Most of the current studies on rehabilitation training for lung cancer patients are clinical trials with small samples, but most of the research results agree that rehabilitation training for lung cancer patients can reduce symptoms, increase activity tolerance, improve quality of life, and even reduce postoperative complications of lung cancer.  A 2013 Cochrane meta-analysis examined the results of three randomized controlled clinical trials in which rehab in lung cancer patients in the perioperative period improved patients’ activity tolerance. Four other reviews similarly found that perioperative and especially preoperative rehabilitation is not only safe but also improves patients’ lung function.  Lung function in patients with advanced lung cancer is an independent prognostic indicator: for every 50m increase in 6-minute walking distance, the patient’s risk of death decreases by approximately 13%. Existing research results show that a moderate increase in daily activities for patients with advanced lung cancer can also improve activity tolerance and reduce respiratory symptoms.  3.How to do rehabilitation training?  For people with lung cancer, 4 minutes of regular exercise may cause difficulty in breathing. Therefore, the intensity of rehabilitation training should not be too high. Currently, it is recommended to use a pedometer to ensure a certain daily walking distance. The amount of activity for lung cancer patients should be measured, usually less than the 10,000 steps per day for healthy people, and the results of various studies mostly recommend 4,000-6,000 steps/day.