Breast cancer, how it affects a healthy life

breast cancerthis is how it affects healthy life after the disease: Spanish scientists have verified how greater compliance with international recommendations for cancer prevention can slightly improve the long-term physical well-being of women who have survived this type of tumor, without affecting their health. mental health.

At the time of diagnosis breast cancerwomen one healthy life acquired individuals had a slightly better perception of their physical health. This is evident from a Spanish study that also shows how those who increased their adherence to these patterns 7 to 12 years later showed a slight improvement in their well-being, while no changes were observed in their behavior. mental health.

This new analysis, published in The Journal of Nutrition, Health and Agingexamines the relationship between adherence to World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research (WCRF/AICR) guidelines and quality of life of surviving women.

Breast cancer is the leading cause of death from this disease the most common tumor in them. Both the diagnosis and the side effects of treatment can affect the quality of life for people who survive.

In 2018, the WCRF/AICR updated its ten cancer prevention recommendations. Despite the increasing number of new cases of breast tumors, there has been no scientific evidence for this until now impact of adopting a healthy lifestyle on the quality of life of long-term survivors.

Quality of life

The study, conducted by experts from the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII), involved researchers from 16 Spanish hospitals. 406 surviving women of breast cancer included in the EpiGEICAM study and followed for an average of 10 years after diagnosis. Epidemiological, clinical, nutritional, physical activity and quality of life information was collected at diagnosis and 7–12 years later.

The authors noted that at the time of diagnosis, each additional point of compliance with recommendations was associated with an increase of 0.78 points in the physical domain of quality of life, representing a slight improvement.

Mental health

Regarding the possible effect of increasing adherence to recommendations over time, each surviving woman’s physical health improved by 0.73 points for each unit increase in adherence. In contrast, their mental well-being was not affected by adherence to recommendations at the time of diagnosis, nor by changes in treatment adherence over time.

Given the increasing number of women surviving this disease, the team believes that it is becoming increasingly necessary to publicize and disseminate these recommendations among them, not only to improve their health-related quality of life, but also to improve the prognosis of breast cancer other pathologies that share the same risk factors.