Remote Exercise Program Reduces Cancer-Related Fatigue, Improves Quality of Life for Patients Undergoing Immunotherapy
A phase II clinical trial study indicates that a 12-week remote exercise program significantly reduces cancer-related fatigue for patients undergoing immunotherapy. Participants reported improved quality of life and high engagement levels with the telehealth-based intervention.
Why it matters
This study provides a scalable, evidence-based strategy to manage debilitating side effects of cancer treatment, potentially improving patient outcomes and adherence to therapy.
A supervised remote exercise program improved the quality of life of patients with cancer undergoing immunotherapy, primarily by reducing cancer fatigue, according to findings from a secondary analysis of a phase II trial that will be presented at the 2026 ASCO Quality Care Symposium ( Abstract 276 ).
“Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms related to both cancer and its treatment. This fatigue contributes to higher overall symptom burden and poorer quality of life, yet practical tools that reliably improve it remain limited. Exercise is actually one of the best evidence-based strategies we have to manage it, even though that can sound counterintuitive to many patients,” said lead study author Paulo Bergerot, MD , a medical oncologist at Hospital Santa Lúcia in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
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