Breast Cancer Patients Benefit from Yoga

[cwes99_03]

Has anyone read the articles today about this? I'm looking for more info on the study that is being reported about.

abc news
Study: Yoga Helps Breast Cancer Patients HEALTH
June 6 - KGO - Women who are being treated for breast cancer may want to try yoga.

A new study by researchers at the University of Texas shows breast cancer patients on radiation treatment who did yoga felt better psychologically.

Experts say yoga incorporates meditation, relaxation, controlled breathing, and stretching.

But the study also found no differences in the level of depression or anxiety of women with breast cancer.

I'm thinking of all kinds of possible causes that these UTexas people didn't consider. The biggest question is "Were the participants in this study volunteers or were they forced against their will to participate in yoga as part of their therapy?" The psychological effects could be purely coincidental as those who are more likely to try the yoga probably would have had similar effects from any type of group meeting for exercise.

[Celeste]

For those like myself, that have or do practice Yoga, this discovery would make perfect sense. (I am also a breast cancer survivor)
The differences in physiological and psychological differences between Yoga and say a half hour of racket ball, are not subtle.
I would highly doubt that patients were "forced" into anything, considering the fact that the treatments for cancer would leave the majority feeling less then cable of participation. Yoga isn't a simple practice of exercise to master. The room temp is usually kept around 110 F* and requires an deep level of dedication.
However, the benefits far outweigh the negatives.


Physiological Benefits of Yoga

Stable autonomic nervous system equilibrium
Pulse rate decreases
Respiratory rate decreases
Blood Pressure decreases (of special significance for hyporeactors)
Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) increases
EEG - alpha waves increase (theta, delta, and beta waves also increase during various stages of meditation)
EMG activity decreases
Cardiovascular efficiency increases
Respiratory efficiency increases
Gastrointestinal function normalizes
Endocrine function normalizes
Excretory functions improve
Musculoskeletal flexibility and joint range of motion increase
Breath-holding time increases
Joint range of motion increase
Grip strength increases
Eye-hand coordination improves
Dexterity skills improve
Reaction time improves
Posture improves
Strength and resiliency increase
Endurance increases
Energy level increases
Weight normalizes
Sleep improves
Immunity increases
Pain decreases
Steadiness improves
Depth perception improves
Balance improves
Integrated functioning of body parts improves

Psychological Benefits of Yoga

Somatic and kinesthetic awareness increase
Mood improves and subjective well-being increases
Self-acceptance and self-actualization increase
Social adjustment increases
Anxiety and Depression decrease
Hostility decreases
Concentration improves
Memory improves
Attention improves
Learning efficiency improves
Mood improves
Self-actualization increase
Social skills increases
Well-being increases
Somatic and kinesthetic awareness increase
Self-acceptance increase
Attention improves
Concentration improves
Memory improves
Learning efficiency improves
Symbol coding improves
Depth perception improves
Flicker fusion frequency improves

Yoga Benefits versus Exercise Benefits

Parasympathetic Nervous System dominates
Subcortical regions of brain dominate
Slow dynamic and static movements
Normalization of muscle tone
Low risk of injuring muscles and ligaments
Low caloric consumption
Effort is minimized, relaxed
Energizing (breathing is natural or controlled)
Balanced activity of opposing muscle groups
Noncompetitive, process-oriented
Awareness is internal (focus is on breath and the infinite)
Limitless possibilities for growth in self-awareness

Yoga is amazing IMHO.

[cwes99_03]

OK, humble opinions aside, do you see the doubt that I raise in this study without having seen it. I'm not starting a thread on yoga here, i'm trying to raise questions about a study that all the news organizations are raving about. Anybody know the source of the study?

Yoga as far as I know doesn't require 110F temperatures.

[Celeste]

My apologies. Perhaps this will help.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/c...TRY=1&SRETRY=0

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...&dopt=Abstract

My apologies again. I should have clarified: High tempertures (105 to 110F) are not for everyone and are only part of Yoga training. One of the main purposes of yoga practice is to learn how to overcome the resistance of the nervous system and relax muscles using awareness.

[cwes99_03]

Yes, if this is the correct study, that second link was helpful. I want to reread it a couple of times to make sure that I catch it all, but I have some preliminary results. Most of what I have gotten out of this is that it was a preliminary 7-week study of two groups of cancer survivors who had been diagnosed over 4 years earlier on average.
1) the measureable differences between the intervention group (those who were given instruction in yoga) and the control group (those who were not) were psychosocial in nature. Of course past studies have shown that any physical exercise is beneficial psychologically for most people.
2) There were only 38 participants in the 7-week study 20 in the intervention group and 18 in the control group. While the results do show some correlation, a larger study is required to further investigate. This much is stipulated in the reading.

Celeste, I couldn't get to the first website you linked. Could you copy and paste the important information for me?

[Celeste]

Cwes....the material is copyrighted. Here is the main page link.
http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/home
On the left side is a search engine. Type in Yoga and breast cancer; it is the first abstract Titled: A pilot study of yoga for breast cancer survivors: physical and psychological benefits.

This site has many hard to find abstracts concerning everything from biology to social sciences. You might also find it useful in the future.

Celeste

[EWright]

cw,

I was studying to become a radiation therapist at one point. The women participating in the study would certainly not have been forced. Docotors cannot even force an adult patient to undergo radition treatments or chemo, let alone a study on the affects of yoga.

As for the effects, it is likely that many types of relaxation (medetation, music therapy, massage) and or moderate exercise (stretching, tai chi, pool therapy), could enduce similar improved sense of well being. Yoga may have some results unique to it, but I don't believe the overall results are unique to yoga.

Having cancer and undergoing chemo or radiation therapy is both difficult both physically and psychologically. Therefore, any form of relaxation or exercise that helps to 'motivate' the patient emotionally or physically without being strenuous should help to bring back a better sense of normalcy and well-being IMHO.