Effects of exercise and oedema massage on fatigue level and quality of life of female breast cancer patients
Sammanfattning
Aim: To investigate the effect of exercise and oedema massage on the quality of life (QoL) and level of fatigue (LOF) of
female patients with stage II and III breast cancer. Method: Twenty-seven female patients with stage II and III breast cancer
whose ages ranged from 33 to 80 years participated in this study. Participants were randomized into two groups A and B.
Participants in groups A received therapeutic exercises and massage, while those in group B received only therapeutic
exercises. QoL and LOF were assessed before and 6 weeks after intervention, using a European Organization for Research and
Treatment of Cancer quality of life questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) and Energy/Fatigue Scale, respectively. Result: There was a
significant improvement (p < 0.05) between the pre- and post-intervention QoL scores of participants in study group A, and
between the post-intervention QoL scores of participants in study group A and control group B (p < 0.05). There was also a
significant improvement (p < 0.05) in the LOF between the pre- and post-intervention scores for participants in groups A and B,
respectively, and between the post-intervention scores of the participants in the groups A and B (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Combined
exercise and massage improved the QoL and LOF of female patients with stage II and III breast cancer compared with exercise
alone.