Abstract
Objective: To determine the efficacy of a three-month resistance training programme on the mobility, muscle strength and lean body mass of patients with pancreatic cancer-induced cachexia. Design: Randomized controlled trial. Setting: Elsahel Teaching Hospital, outpatient clinic of the Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo, Egypt. Participants: Patients with pancreatic cancer-induced cachexia. Interventions: Participants were randomized to the resistance training group (n = 20) and control group (n = 20). Main measures: Outcomes including mobility, muscle strength and lean body mass were measured at baseline, three months after surgical resection and 12 weeks after intervention. Results: The mean (SD) age was 51.9 (5.03) years and body mass index was 21.1 (1.13) kg/m(2); 65% of patients were male. Compared to the control group, the resistance training group showed significant improvement in mobility: 400-m walk performance (270.3-256.9 seconds vs 266.4-264.2 seconds, respectively) and chair rise (13.82-12.53 seconds vs 13.77-13.46 seconds, respectively). Similarly, muscle strength was also significantly improved in the resistance training group than in the control group; we observed increase in peak torque of knee extensors (P = 0.004), elbow flexors (P = 0.001) and elbow extensors, improvement in lean mass of the upper limb (6.28-6.46 kg vs 6.31-6.23 kg, respectively) and lower limb (16.31-16.58 kg vs 16.4-16.31 kg, respectively). Conclusion: A three-month resistance training improved the mobility of patients with pancreatic cancer-induced cachexia. Muscle strength and lean body mass also improved.