Tai Chi May Enhance Quality of Life for Patients With Advanced Lung Cancer

Performing aerobic exercise (AE) and tai chi (TC) may improve sleep quality, as well as physical and psychological outcomes, in patients with advanced lung cancer, according to a study published in JAMA Oncology.

In this assessor-blinded, randomized clinical trial, which took place across 3 Hong Kong hospitals, investigators assessed 226 participants with advanced lung cancer. Patients in the population of interest were recruited and randomized 1:1:1 to AE, TC, or a control arm for the duration of 16 weeks. The AE group received two 60-minute supervised group exercise sessions and home-based exercises per month, the TC group received 60-minute group exercise sessions twice weekly, and the control arm received physical activity guidelines.

The main end point was subjective sleep quality. Secondary end points included sleep measures, anxiety, depression, fatigue, quality of life, physical function, circadian rhythm, and 1-year survival. All end points were assessed at baseline, 16 weeks (T1), and 1 year (T2).

Tai Chi Is Therapy

The study showed that participants in the AE and TC groups saw notably higher improvements in subjective sleep quality from baseline to T1 (AE: between-group difference, −2.72; 95% CI, −3.97 to −1.46; P<.001; TC: between-group difference, −4.21; 95% CI, −5.48 to −2.94; P<.001) and T2 (AE: between-group difference, −1.75; 95% CI, −3.24 to −0.26; P=.02; TC: between-group difference, −3.95; 95% CI, −5.41 to −2.49; P<.001), as well as in psychological distress, physical function, step count, and circadian rhythm. Interestingly, the TC group showed a statistically greater improvement in sleep than the AE group at T1 (between-group difference, −1.49; 95% CI, −2.77 to −0.22; P=.02) and T2 (between-group difference, −2.20; 95% CI, −3.57 to −0.83; P<.001). Also, study subjects in the TC group showed notably higher improvement in survival compared with the control group.

“In this randomized clinical trial, AE and TC improved sleep, psychological distress, physical function, and circadian rhythm, with TC demonstrating greater benefit on sleep and survival. Both exercises, but particularly TC, can be incorporated into lung cancer survivorship care,” the researchers concluded.