TY - JOUR
T1 - Acute aerobic exercise effects on cognitive function in breast cancer survivors
T2 - A randomized crossover trial
AU - Salerno, Elizabeth A.
AU - Rowland, Kendrith
AU - Kramer, Arthur F.
AU - McAuley, Edward
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 The Author(s).
PY - 2019/4/23
Y1 - 2019/4/23
N2 - Background: Many breast cancer survivors (BCS) report deficits in cognitive function. Physical activity (PA) has been associated with better processing speed and memory in healthy adults and thus may be a useful method for improving cognition in BCS. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an acute bout of PA on processing speed and spatial working memory in a sample of BCS. Methods: Using a repeated measures, crossover design, BCS [N = 27; M age (SD) = 49.11(8.05)] completed two sessions in counterbalanced order: 30 min of moderate-intensity treadmill walking and 30 min of seated rest. Women completed cognitive tasks immediately before and after each session. Results: Within-subjects repeated measures analyses of variance revealed a significant time by session effect for processing speed reaction time [F (1,25) = 5.02, p =.03, η2 = 0.17]. This interaction was driven by significantly reduced reaction time (e.g., faster response) post-exercise and no change post-rest. Further between-subjects analyses indicated a significant time by session by moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) split [F (1,25) = 5.23, p =.03, η2 = 0.17], such that women who engaged in ≥45 min of average daily MVPA reduced their reaction time post-exercise (p =.01) and increased RT post-rest (p =.06). Time by session effects for spatial working memory 3-item accuracy and 4-item reaction time trended towards significance, p = 0.08 and p = 0.10, respectively, again driven by better performance post-exercise. Conclusions: The moderate effect of acute exercise on domains of memory and processing speed in BCS is encouraging. Cancer-related cognitive impairment remains largely misunderstood; however, the results from the present study offer preliminary evidence for the positive relationship between acute exercise and cognition in BCS. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02592070. Registered 30 October 2015. Retroactively registered.
AB - Background: Many breast cancer survivors (BCS) report deficits in cognitive function. Physical activity (PA) has been associated with better processing speed and memory in healthy adults and thus may be a useful method for improving cognition in BCS. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of an acute bout of PA on processing speed and spatial working memory in a sample of BCS. Methods: Using a repeated measures, crossover design, BCS [N = 27; M age (SD) = 49.11(8.05)] completed two sessions in counterbalanced order: 30 min of moderate-intensity treadmill walking and 30 min of seated rest. Women completed cognitive tasks immediately before and after each session. Results: Within-subjects repeated measures analyses of variance revealed a significant time by session effect for processing speed reaction time [F (1,25) = 5.02, p =.03, η2 = 0.17]. This interaction was driven by significantly reduced reaction time (e.g., faster response) post-exercise and no change post-rest. Further between-subjects analyses indicated a significant time by session by moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) split [F (1,25) = 5.23, p =.03, η2 = 0.17], such that women who engaged in ≥45 min of average daily MVPA reduced their reaction time post-exercise (p =.01) and increased RT post-rest (p =.06). Time by session effects for spatial working memory 3-item accuracy and 4-item reaction time trended towards significance, p = 0.08 and p = 0.10, respectively, again driven by better performance post-exercise. Conclusions: The moderate effect of acute exercise on domains of memory and processing speed in BCS is encouraging. Cancer-related cognitive impairment remains largely misunderstood; however, the results from the present study offer preliminary evidence for the positive relationship between acute exercise and cognition in BCS. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02592070. Registered 30 October 2015. Retroactively registered.
KW - Acute exercise
KW - Breast cancer
KW - Cognitive function
KW - Survivorship
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85064740978&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1186/s12885-019-5589-1
DO - 10.1186/s12885-019-5589-1
M3 - Article
C2 - 31014267
AN - SCOPUS:85064740978
SN - 1471-2407
VL - 19
JO - BMC Cancer
JF - BMC Cancer
IS - 1
M1 - 371
ER -