How Movement and Exercise for Mesothelioma Can Help
After a diagnosis of mesothelioma, it’s important to not only consider treatments but also additional ways to support your overall health. A great option for many is exercising.
Patients with mesothelioma can benefit from low-impact activities that improve endurance, flexibility, muscle strength, and balance without putting too much stress on the body.
Exercising after a mesothelioma diagnosis can help with:
- Easing symptoms like fatigue and weakness
- Tolerating treatments and related side effects
- Managing anxiety, stress, and emotional health
- Recovering strength and function after surgery
“We want patients to be active. We want them to be up and about living their normal life as much as possible, so that they can return to their normal life and recover and keep their spirits up.”
– Dr. Zaid Abdelsattar, mesothelioma specialist at Loyola University Medical Center
To avoid any complications, always talk with your mesothelioma specialist about exercise and cancer before starting any new regimens. This is especially true before and after undergoing mesothelioma treatment.
Get our Free Mesothelioma Guide shipped overnight for more information on options that can improve your prognosis and support your treatment goals.
Safe Exercises for Mesothelioma Patients
The best exercise routines for mesothelioma will depend on your overall health and fitness level after a diagnosis and on the treatments your doctors recommend.
Top exercises for mesothelioma may include:
- Cycling
- Dancing
- Strength training
- Stretching
- Swimming
- Tai chi
- Walking
- Yoga
Learn about simple ways to incorporate these exercises into your routine after a mesothelioma diagnosis below.
Cycling or Stationary Biking
Cycling provides low-impact aerobic exercise that can improve your endurance while placing less stress on your joints. Stationary biking may be easier than riding outdoors as it reduces the risk of falls and allows you to exercise at your own pace.
Begin with low resistance and short sessions, gradually increasing your activity as you are able and with the guidance of your medical staff.
Dancing
Dancing can be an enjoyable way to stay active during mesothelioma treatment. Whether dancing around the house or participating in a gentle dance class, dancing may help improve your endurance, coordination, balance, and mood.
Choose movements that match your energy level and don’t hesitate to rest whenever needed.
Strength Training
Strength training helps maintain muscle strength, supports bone health, and may make everyday activities easier during mesothelioma treatment.
Resistance training may also counter muscle loss that can occur during chemotherapy or prolonged inactivity.
Many mesothelioma patients can safely begin with:
- Bodyweight exercises
- Chair exercises
- Light hand weights
- Resistance bands
Start with light resistance and perform slow, controlled movements. When it comes to exercise and cancer, lifting heavy weights may not always be appropriate, so always follow your health care team’s recommendations.
Stretching
Gentle stretching can improve flexibility, reduce stiffness, and maintain range of motion during mesothelioma treatment. It may be helpful after surgery or during periods of reduced activity.
Stretch slowly until you feel a gentle pull, then hold each stretch for 15 to 30 seconds without bouncing. Focus on smooth, controlled movements and avoid stretching through pain.
If you’re recovering from mesothelioma surgery, avoid placing excessive strain on healing incisions unless your health care team has cleared you.
Swimming and Water Aerobics
Swimming and water aerobics provide a full-body workout while reducing stress on your joints and muscles. Water makes movement easier for many people experiencing weakness or fatigue.
However, swimming may not be right for every patient. For example, you may need to avoid swimming until surgical incisions have healed completely.
You should also speak with your health care team before swimming if you have radiation-related skin irritation, central lines, feeding tubes, or other medical devices that could increase the risk of infection.
Download our Free Doctor Questions Checklist to get help reviewing exercise plans and other ways to support your health with a mesothelioma specialist.
Tai Chi
Tai chi is a low-impact exercise that combines slow, flowing movements with controlled breathing. It may help improve your balance, flexibility, coordination, and relaxation while placing minimal strain on your body.
Because tai chi movements can be modified for different ability levels, it may be a good option if you cannot tolerate more intense exercises.
Walking
Walking is a safe, simple, and effective way to exercise. If you’re just getting started, begin with a slow walk for a few minutes. As your stamina improves, you can increase the length or pace of your walks based on how you feel.
Even short walks can help with:
- Improving energy levels
- Maintaining cardiovascular health
- Reducing fatigue
The Journal of Respiration studied the benefits of exercise among mesothelioma patients. Several study participants noted that walking — even around the house or on a treadmill — was beneficial.
Ellen Patton, one of the longest-living mesothelioma survivors, remembers how walking her dog helped her following her 2001 diagnosis.
“I had a dog that I absolutely adored, and when I first got sick, I moved in with my mother, and the dog needed to go out… so I forced myself to walk my dog. And I really think that helped build up my strength a lot.”
Contact your health care provider if you experience chest pain, dizziness, severe shortness of breath, or other concerning mesothelioma symptoms during or after walking.
Yoga
Gentle yoga combines stretching, balance, breathing exercises, and relaxation techniques. It’s often recommended as a complementary therapy to ease physical discomfort and boost mood.
For some mesothelioma patients, yoga may help:
- Ease fatigue during treatment
- Improve flexibility and mobility
- Reduce stress or anxiety
Choose beginner or restorative yoga classes whenever possible, and avoid positions that cause pain or place pressure on healing surgical sites.
Benefits of Exercise for Mesothelioma Treatment
Regular physical activity can help you maintain your strength, independence, and quality of life throughout mesothelioma treatment. Staying active can also help lower the impact of several common treatment side effects.
Potential benefits of exercise during mesothelioma treatment include:
- Making everyday activities easier
- Boosting mood and reducing stress
- Building muscle strength and endurance
- Increasing energy and reducing fatigue
- Maintaining flexibility and balance
- Preserving bone health during inactivity
- Supporting lung function and breathing
“Try to maintain physical activity, keep your body strong and moving. You don’t have to do anything crazy. Just taking walks, getting fresh air, and exposing yourself to nature can help reduce stress levels.”
– Dr. Carrie Lee, mesothelioma specialist at UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center
Even small amounts of physical activity can be beneficial. When it comes to exercise and cancer, the goal is to stay as active as your body allows while avoiding overexertion.
How Treatment Impacts Exercise for Mesothelioma
Which mesothelioma treatments you receive, and how your body responds to them, can affect which exercises will be most appropriate for you.
Your mesothelioma doctors can make specific recommendations as to which exercises will be right for your case, and when you should start or stop them, depending on how your body responds to treatments.
Here’s what to know about exercise and cancer treatments:
- Chemotherapy may cause fatigue, nausea, dizziness, or low blood counts that limit physical activity. On difficult days, even a short walk or gentle stretching session can help maintain mobility.
- Some patients receiving immunotherapy experience fatigue or muscle aches. Listen to your body and adjust your activity level as needed. If symptoms become severe or suddenly worsen, contact your health care team.
- Radiation therapy may cause fatigue or skin irritation near the treatment area. Gentle exercise is often still appropriate, but patients should avoid activities that irritate sensitive skin or delay healing.
- You will need time off from exercise following a major mesothelioma surgery to allow your body to recover. However, exercising before and after surgery may be recommended to support recovery.
“Even the aspect of going out walking for a half hour a day, even if it’s 15 minutes twice a day, really is going to make you tolerate therapy.”
Your ability to exercise may change throughout mesothelioma treatment. Some days you may feel strong enough for a longer walk, while other days fatigue or other treatment side effects may require extra rest.
Rest is important, but avoiding inactivity whenever possible can help you build strength and improve your overall well-being during treatment.
Exercising for Mesothelioma Before Surgery: What Is Prehabilitation?
In some cases, specialists may recommend prehabilitation, or prehab, before mesothelioma surgery. Prehabilitation focuses on improving your physical condition before an operation so your body is better prepared for surgery and recovery.
Depending on your health, a prehabilitation program may include:
- Breathing exercises recommended by your health care team
- Gentle strength training
- Stretching and flexibility exercises
- Walking or other aerobic exercises
Patients who followed a prehabilitation program for cytoreductive surgery, which is used to treat peritoneal mesothelioma, had lower morbidity rates, fewer pulmonary complications, and shorter Intensive Care Unit (ICU) stays, according to a report published in Cancer.
Building strength before surgery may help you recover more quickly and return to daily activities sooner. Your surgeon or rehabilitation team can recommend an exercise plan that matches your current abilities.
Prehabilitation programs are personalized to improve strength, endurance, and functional capacity before treatment.
Download our Free Doctor Questions Checklist for tips on talking with a mesothelioma specialist about exercise and other ways to support your health.
How to Exercise Safely With Mesothelioma
Exercise is generally safe for most mesothelioma patients, but taking a few precautions can help you reduce the risk of injury.
To exercise safely while undergoing mesothelioma care:
- Rest when your body needs it.
- Start slowly and gradually increase your activity level.
- Stay hydrated unless your health care team has instructed otherwise.
- Talk with your mesothelioma specialist before starting a new exercise plan.
- Use resistance bands or light weights instead of heavy weightlifting.
- Warm up before exercising and cool down afterward.
- Wear supportive shoes and choose safe walking surfaces.
Listening to your body is one of the most important parts of exercising safely during mesothelioma treatment. If you don’t feel well enough for your usual routine, it’s okay to reduce the intensity or simply take a short walk instead.
Stop exercising and contact your health care team if you experience chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, or any new or severe pain.
Creating an Exercise Plan with Your Mesothelioma Care Team
Every mesothelioma patient has different needs, symptoms, and treatment goals. Working with your health care team can help you create an exercise plan that supports your health while accounting for your diagnosis and current treatment.
Your mesothelioma care team may recommend working with:
- A physical therapist
- A pulmonary rehabilitation specialist
- A dietitian to develop a nutrition plan that supports exercise and recovery
Your exercise plan may change over time as you recover from surgery, complete chemotherapy, or begin other treatments.
However, keeping in regular communication with your health care providers helps ensure your physical activity remains both safe and effective.
Get our Free Mesothelioma Guide now to explore treatments and learn how to develop a care plan that best suits your needs after a diagnosis.
Mesothelioma Cancer and Exercise: Get Support Now
Staying active during mesothelioma treatment can be difficult when fatigue, shortness of breath, surgery, or other treatment side effects affect your daily routine.
However, with the right care team helping you through treatment, you can explore exercises to support your overall health and help you feel better.
At Mesothelioma Hope, we work to assist patients throughout their diagnosis, including reviewing supportive options like exercise plans.
Mesothelioma Hope is here to help you:
- Connect with experienced mesothelioma specialists
- Review treatment plans and holistic options
- Pursue financial resources to afford care
Call us at (866) 608-8933 or get our Free Mesothelioma Guide to connect with experienced mesothelioma specialists and get the support you need throughout your treatment journey.
Movement and Exercise for Mesothelioma FAQs
Is exercise safe for mesothelioma patients?
Yes, exercise is generally safe for mesothelioma patients when it is tailored to their health, treatment plan, and physical abilities. Simple exercises like walking, cycling, or lifting light weights are safe ways to support your overall health.
However, always talk with your health care team before beginning a new exercise routine. In some cases, you may need to limit or stop exercising depending on which treatments you’re receiving. For example, you’ll need time to recover from a major surgery before starting to exercise again.
How much exercise should mesothelioma patients get?
There is no single exercise routine that works for everyone with mesothelioma. It will depend on factors that are specific to your health and treatment plans.
For many adults with cancer, organizations such as the American Cancer Society (ACS) recommend gradually working toward regular exercise.
However, general recommendations include:
- 150 to 300 minutes of moderate aerobic physical activity each week, or
- 75 to 150 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity each week
- Muscle-strengthening exercises at least two days per week
The most important goal is to remain as active as safely possible while gradually building your exercise routine over time.
Can exercise improve lung function with pleural mesothelioma?
Exercises and pulmonary rehabilitation are often seen as essential to improving quality of life for pleural mesothelioma, according to a review in Current Oncology.
Study authors found that physical activity may help improve endurance, maintain lung function, and reduce shortness of breath for some patients when performed safely.
Call (866) 608-8933 now for help exploring ways to support your lungs and health while facing pleural mesothelioma.
Should I exercise after mesothelioma surgery?
Many mesothelioma patients benefit from gentle physical activity after surgery, but the timing and type of exercise should be determined by their surgeon.
Walking, stretching, and other light activities are often introduced gradually during recovery to support lung function, strength, and overall quality of life.
Can I exercise during mesothelioma chemotherapy?
Many mesothelioma patients continue exercising during chemotherapy, although the intensity often needs to be adjusted based on fatigue and other side effects. Even short periods of movement may help maintain strength and improve overall well-being.
Download our Free Doctor Questions Checklist so you can be prepared to get the answers you need about treatments, exercise, and more at your next appointment.
