23/04/2026
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✅ Multiple studies report a 10–15% decline in muscle cross sectional area after 4–6 months of neoadjuvant therapy for breast cancer (Rossi et al. 2020, Wiederin et al. 2020, Brooks et al. 2026). This decline is comparable to a decade of natural aging in otherwise healthy older adults (Volpi et al. 2010).
✅ This is a significant concern as low muscle mass among cancer patients seems to be an important prognostic factor for outcomes in terms of treatment-induced toxicity and survival (Rier et al. 2016, Looijaard et al. 2020).
✅ But, resistance training, especially in a supervides setting, can counteract this loss of muscle mass in cancer patients (Köppel et al. 2021)
📘 References
Rossi F, Torri L, Lambertini M, De Giorgis S, Calabrese M, Tagliafico AS. Musclemass loss after neoadjuvant chemotherapy in breast cancer: estimation on breastmagnetic resonance imaging using pectoralis muscle area. Eur Radiol. 2020Aug;30(8):4234-4241. doi: 10.1007/s00330-020-06799-5. Epub 2020 Mar 31. PMID:
32232787.
Wiederin J, Gu C, Jewett P, Blaes AH. Pectoralis muscle wasting during chemotherapy. Am Soc Clin Oncol. 2020
Brooks AM, Lane AD, Kirkham AA, Fairman CM. Resistance Exercise: A Potential Intervention for Managing Cardiovascular Health in Individuals with a History of Cancer. Sports Med Open. 2026 Apr 15;12(1):45. doi: 10.1186/s40798-026-00994-2.
PMID: 41984271; PMCID: PMC13083563.
Volpi E, Nazemi R, Fujita S. Muscle tissue changes with aging. Curr Opin Clin Nutr Metab Care. 2004 Jul;7(4):405-10. doi: 10.1097/01.mco.0000134362.76653.b2.PMID: 15192443; PMCID: PMC2804956.
Rier HN, Jager A, Sleijfer S, Maier AB, Levin MD. The Prevalence and Prognostic Value of Low Muscle Mass in Cancer Patients: A Review of the Literature.Oncologist. 2016 Nov;21(11):1396-1409. doi: 10.1634/theoncologist.2016-0066. Epub 2016 Jul 13. PMID: 27412391; PMCID: PMC5189631.
Looijaard SMLM, Te Lintel Hekkert ML, Wüst RCI, Otten RHJ, Meskers CGM, MaierAB. Pathophysiological mechanisms explaining poor clinical outcome of older cancer patients with low skeletal muscle mass. Acta Physiol (Oxf). 2021 Jan;231(1):e13516. doi: 10.1111/apha.13516. Epub 2020 Jul 24. PMID: 32478975; PMCID:
PMC7757176.
Koeppel M, Mathis K, Schmitz KH, Wiskemann J. Muscle hypertrophy in cancer patients and survivors via strength training. A meta-analysis and meta-regression. Crit Rev Oncol Hematol. 2021 Jul;163:103371. doi: 10.1016/j.critrevonc.2021.103371. Epub 2021 May 29. PMID: 34062243.
