Cancer patients who are physically fit before having surgery tend to have a better recovery.

Background

Cancer patients who are physically fit before having surgery tend to have a better recovery. Unfortunately, cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, which patients often receive before their surgery, reduce a patient’s fitness. Research at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust has found that patients can maintain or even increase their fitness before surgery by taking part in an exercise programme in hospital. In order to find a model for delivering such a programme more widely in the NHS the team want to test if patients are also able to take part in such an exercise programme in the community (gyms and charity centres), and whether providing additional psychological support to prepare them for surgery (improving mental fitness) is also helpful to recovery.