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exercises can quickly boost the immune system of patients recovering
from stomach cancer, researchers in Korea have found.
In a study
of 35 patients who'd had surgery to remove stomach tumors, those
who began exercising just two days after surgery showed stronger
immune function than those who did not exercise. Two weeks after
surgery, the exercisers had significantly more natural killer
cells compared with non-exercisers; these natural killer cells
attack tumor cells and help ward off infection.
Beginning
two days after surgery, a group of 17 of patients performed
simple exercises while lying bed, three times a week. Once they
could walk after the operation, they started aerobic exercise
on stationary bikes, five days per week. Blood samples were
taken to monitor changes in patients' natural killer cells.
While the
killer cells decreased in both groups during the first week
after surgery, they made a comeback in exercisers during the
second week. The cells continued their descent in non-exercisers.
As time passes, the researchers note, natural killer cells will
increase in all of the non-exercisers, however the results of
this study clearly shows exercise has a dramatic impact on immune
function.
Because
impaired immune function is believed to help allow cancer to
take hold, interest in using exercise to strengthen the immune
system is growing. Another study has shown that after treatment,
cancer patients with high levels of natural killer cells lived
for a significantly longer time without the cancer spreading.
Although
other factors, like nutrition and cancer therapy itself, affect
natural killer cells, exercise can be one way to boost cancer
patients' immunity. And exercise doesn't produce adverse reactions
like most all drugs.
Reference:
1. Archives
of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2000;81:777-779.
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