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Certain types of exercise may reduce the spread of cancer, according to a new study by Israeli researchers.
According to a study published in the journal cancer-research a specific type of exercise could reduce the spread of metastatic cancer, also called stage four cancer.
Men and mice were analyzed
Within the framework of this study, the biochemists of the University of Tel-Aviv observed during twenty years more than 2700 Israeli men and women aged from 25 to 64 years. Important detail: they did not have cancer at the start of the study.
All participants also completed questionnaires on their physical activity.
The researchers also analyzed data from 14 male and female runners between the ages of 25 and 45. They collected data on their breathing, metabolic measurements and blood samples before and after exercising on a treadmill.
Finally, the team of scientists also evaluated groups of mice. The first group followed an eight-week exercise program and the second received an injection of melanoma cells to assess the relationship between the spread of cancer and exercise.
Result ? Participants presented a “significantly reduced likelihood of highly metastatic cancer“.
For their part, the mice which received the injection of cancerous cells, were more “protected against metastases in distant organs“.
These results show that exercise could have a positive impact on cancer, and in particular on its ability to spread from one organ to another.
Cancer needs glucose to spread
Researchers explain this process… by glucose.
And for good reason: cancer cells draw their energy mainly from glucose in order to meet their energy needs.
“The study reveals that through exercise, especially intense exercise, healthy cells demand more glucose… which will impact cancer cells, which receive less. As a result, the growth of cancer, especially cells that form metastases, is significantly hampered or prevented.”concludes Dr. McClain.