Author: Yuxia Wang#1, Ruirui Xing#2, Renwei Wang3, Benshila Marley Mberi Mabiri4, Yong Gao5, Weimo Zhu6,7
Affiliation: <sup>1</sup> Physical Education Department, Hainan Tropical Ocean University, Sanya, 572022, Hainan, China.
<sup>2</sup> Institute for Health and Sport, Victoria University, Melbourne, Australia.
<sup>3</sup> School of Exercise and Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, 200438, China. renwwang@163.com.
<sup>4</sup> School of Exercise and Health, Shanghai University of Sport, Shanghai, 200438, China.
<sup>5</sup> Department of Kinesiology, Boise State University, Boise, 83725, USA.
<sup>6</sup> Yunnan Plateau Thermal Health Industry Innovation Research Institute, Tengchong, 679100, China.
<sup>7</sup> Department of Health and Kinesiology, University of Illinois at Urban-Champaign, Champaign, 61801, USA.
Conference/Journal: Support Care Cancer
Date published: 2024 Dec 28
Other:
Volume ID: 33 , Issue ID: 1 , Pages: 58 , Special Notes: doi: 10.1007/s00520-024-09098-7. , Word Count: 290
Purpose:
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a 6-month Guolin Qigong on quality of life and serum cortisol among patients with cancer.
Methods:
This study was a two-arm and non-randomized controlled trial. Forty-nine patients with cancer who were over 18 years of age and diagnosed with cancer were enrolled in this study and assigned to either the Guolin Qigong intervention group (IG, n = 26) or the usual care group (UC, n = 23) for 6 months. During the Guolin Qigong exercise, the participants completed a training program consisting of five sessions per week and 40-60 min per session. The UC group maintained their usual lifestyle. The main outcomes included self-reported quality of life (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, EORTC-QLQ-C30) and well-being (General Well-Being Schedule, GWB). The second outcome was stress-related hormone serum cortisol measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. All measurements were assessed at baseline and 6 months.
Results:
Forty-nine participants (57.4% females, 26 in IG vs 23 in UC) were enrolled in the study, and forty-five participants completed all tests after the 6-month intervention (48.9% females, 25 in IG vs 20 in UC). Compared to the UC group, quality of life, physical function, and pain significantly improved in the IG (P < 0.05). Similarly, some sub-scales of GWB improved in the IG group compared to the UC group, especially for cheerful distracted and overall score (P < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference in serum cortisol between the two groups either at baseline or after intervention (P > 0.05).
Conclusions:
Six-month Guolin Qigong could improve quality of life, physical function, and pain, and have a beneficial effect on the well-being of cancer patients. Further studies are warranted to confirm these results.
Keywords: Cancer; Cortisol; General well-being; Qigong; Quality of life.
PMID: 39731651 DOI: 10.1007/s00520-024-09098-7