We Know Exercise Prevents Cancer. A New Study Tells Us Why

Forty-five minutes of intense exercise three times a week may reduce cancer risk in patients with Lynch syndrome, a genetic condition that can lead to cancer at a young age.

That amount of exercise made the immune system more able to stamp out cancer cells, researchers at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center found. The intervention — 45 minutes of high-intensity cycling 3 days a week — was specific by design, said oncologist Eduardo Vilar-Sanchez, MD, PhD, a professor of clinical cancer prevention and the study's lead author. 

The study was small (just 21 people), but it builds on a vast body of evidence linking regular exercise to a decreased risk of cancer, particularly colorectal cancer. But the MD Anderson researchers went a step further, investigating how exercise might lower cancer risk. 

People in the exercise group also saw a drop in levels of the inflammatory marker prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). The drop was closely linked to the increase in immune cells. Both changes suggest a stronger immune response. 

"The public should know that engaging in any form of exercise will somehow lead to effects in cancer prevention," Vilar-Sanchez said.

Source: MEDspace