A new study suggests that exercise can boost the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapy.
The effects of exercise on cancer immunotherapy in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia were published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.
The research found that exercise can stimulate immune cells and enhance the body’s immunity, which is helpful for patients undergoing cancer immunotherapy.
Exercising during cancer treatment can be challenging, but boosting the body’s innate immunity is critical in cancer immunotherapy.
The research team studied the impact of exercise on cancer immunotherapy in 20 patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), a type of blood cancer. These patients, who had never received cancer treatment before, cycled for 20 to 30 minutes every day after the study began.
It was found that the number of natural killer cells, a type of cancer immune cell, increased by 254% in patients who consistently exercised.
The effect of rituximab, a cancer immunotherapy that relies on these natural killer cells, more than doubled. Rituximab attaches to the surface of cancer cells, making it easier for natural killer cells to find and kill cancer cells.
The researchers explained that the antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity process by rituximab is enhanced by exercise. Based on these findings, the research team concluded that exercise can improve the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapy.
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