Feel Like Cancer Has Zapped Your Energy?

Nearly 60 percent or more of those with cancer report feeling too tired to perform tasks of daily life.

If you have cancer or are undergoing treatment for it, you may be experiencing an unusual and persistent sense of tiredness. Known as cancer-related fatigue, this condition involves more than the feeling of being tired physically, mentally and emotionally. It is the most prevalent symptom of cancer therapy. If you’ve been told to “rest and take it easy,” that approach to care is ineffective in battling cancer-related fatigue. The good news is that cancer-related fatigue can be reduced using a tool within each person’s reach—regular exercise. Let specialists at the Cancer Fatigue Program at Specialty Rehabilitation Inc. show you how exercise can help to restore your vigor.

Managing fatigue is an important part of cancer care.

Cancer-related fatigue is reportedly the most common and distressing side effect of cancer and its treatment. Perhaps all you want to do is sleep, even if sleep doesn’t bring any relief. Maybe you struggle to perform a task that normally takes very little effort. It could be you don’t feel motivated to do anything or you have feelings of sadness, irritability or frustration that change easily. Whether you are receiving treatment such as radiation or biologic therapy, chemotherapy or a bone marrow transplant, cancer-related fatigue is extremely common among those with cancer. But that doesn’t mean you have to accept its limitations. In fact, you have the right to receive healthcare to manage this symptom.

Treatment could be as simple as regular exercise.

Perhaps you’ve seen the advertisements for medications that help to battle cancer-related fatigue. But these medicines are effective only in treating anemia, one of many causes of cancer-related fatigue. There are a variety of factors related to cancer and its treatment that contribute to the development of fatigue. 

Regardless of the cause, randomized clinical trials have repeatedly demonstrated a decrease in cancer-related fatigue in patients whose treatment plans include exercise. 

The mode, intensity, duration and frequency of exercise varies for each individual, although aerobic programs show the best results.

We’ll customize a safe exercise program appropriate for you.

Here’s a sampling of what you can expect from the Cancer Fatigue Program:

• A physical therapist specializing in cancer-related fatigue will conduct a comprehensive evaluation to help plan an exercise program that is appropriate for you.
• We’ll educate you about ways to conserve energy, reduce stress and use distraction to think about things other than fatigue.
• Our exercise programs are designed to work in conjunction with such other cancer treatments as radiation therapy and chemotherapy.
• Fatigue can exist beyond treatment (30 to 75 percent of cancer survivors have reported fatigue continuing for months or years after completing active cancer treatment). We’ll teach you how to describe your level of fatigue to your healthcare team so you can continue to seek the help you need.