Review of yoga therapy during cancer treatment
Open accessAbstract
Purpose Reviews of yoga research that distinguish results of trials conducted during (versus after) cancer treatment are needed to guide future research and clinical practice. We therefore conducted a review of non-randomized studies and randomized controlled trials of yoga interventions for children and adults undergoing treatment for any cancer type.Methods Studies were identified via research databases and reference lists. Inclusion criteria were the following: (1) children or adults undergoing cancer treatment, (2) intervention stated as yoga or component of yoga, and (3) publication in English in peer-reviewed journals through October 2015. Exclusion criteria were the following: (1) samples receiving hormone therapy only, (2) interventions involving meditation only, and (3) yoga delivered within broader cancer recovery or mindfulness-based stress reduction programs.Results Results of non-randomized (adult n = 8, pediatric n = 4) and randomized controlled trials (adult n = 13, pediatric n = 0) conducted during cancer treatment are summarized separately by age group. Findings most consistently support improvement in psychological outcomes (e.g., depression, distress, anxiety). Several studies also found that yoga enhanced quality of life, though further investigation is needed to clarify domain-specific efficacy (e.g., physical, social, cancer-specific). Regarding physical and biomedical outcomes, evidence increasingly suggests that yoga ameliorates sleep and fatigue; additional research is needed to advance preliminary findings for other treatment sequelae and stress/immunity biomarkers.Conclusions Among adults undergoing cancer treatment, evidence supports recommending yoga for improving psychological outcomes, with potential for also improving physical symptoms. Evidence is insufficient to evaluate the efficacy of yoga in pediatric oncology. We describe suggestions for strengthening yoga research methodology to inform clinical practice guidelines.
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Low to moderate-intensity exercises could help cancer patients recover, deal with treatment, and extend survival time.
“An increasing number of studies have shown that low to moderate-intensity exercises could help cancer patients to recover, deal with treatment, and also have an impact on extending survival time [2,3,4,5].”
From The Effect of Vinyasa Yoga Practice on the Well-Being of Breast-Cancer Patients during COVID-19 Pandemic (2023) · cites this paper as [4]
The Discussion (Clinical Implications and Conclusions; page unavailable) reports that yoga can improve physical function and other outcomes during cancer treatment, and that physically active survivors tend to live longer. It does not establish a benefit for low- to moderate-intensity exercise generally or show that such exercise extends survival; extending survival through yoga is presented as a possibility for future research. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredThe majority of studies have examined yoga's impact for patients with breast and ovarian cancer.
“the majority of studies have examined its impact for patients with breast and ovarian cancer.30”
From Individualized, Single Session Yoga Therapy to Reduce Physical and Emotional Symptoms in Hospitalized Hematological Cancer Patients. (2019) · cites this paper as [30]
The Discussion (Summary and Limitations; page unavailable) says study samples predominantly included women with breast cancer, supporting the majority claim for breast cancer. The References list a pilot study involving women with ovarian or breast cancer, but the review does not identify ovarian cancer as a major focus of the studies. (LLM, conf=0.87)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredYoga practices have been shown to be effective for improving sleep, peripheral muscular strength, and QOL, and for reducing fatigue, pain, nausea, and inflammatory signaling in cancer survivors.
“have been shown to be effective for improving sleep,27 peripheral muscular strength,28 and QOL,29 and for reducing fatigue,30 pain,31 nausea,32 and inflammatory signaling33 in cancer survivors”
From Individualized, Single Session Yoga Therapy to Reduce Physical and Emotional Symptoms in Hospitalized Hematological Cancer Patients. (2019) · cites this paper as [30]
The Discussion (Summary and Limitations; page unavailable) supports improvements in sleep, fatigue, and some aspects of quality of life during cancer treatment. The Results (Adult Randomized Controlled Trials; page unavailable) report improvements in pain and nausea in several studies, but the review does not establish improved peripheral muscular strength or reduced inflammatory signaling; it describes other biomarker findings as preliminary. Its evidence focuses on people undergoing treatment, rather than cancer survivors generally. (LLM, conf=0.86)
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References 73 · Cited by 114
- Authors
- Danhauer, S. C., Addington, E. L., Sohl, S. J., Chaoul, A., & Cohen, L.
- Affiliations
- Wake Forest University Health Sciences (US)
- Northwestern University (US)
- Wake Forest University (US)
- The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (US)
- Corresponding author
- Danhauer, Suzanne C.
- Venue
- Supportive Care in Cancer
- Published
- 2017-01-07
- Volume
- 25
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 1357-1372
- ISSN
- 0941-4355 (ISSN-L)
- 1433-7339
- PMC
- PMC5777241
- OpenAlex
- W2568451038
- Cited by
- 114
- References
- 73
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 6
- FWCI
- 1.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Supportive Care in Cancer (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Cancer Institute (T32CA193193)
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (K01AT008219)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Mindfulness and Compassion Interventions
- Keywords
- yoga therapy, cancer therapy, psychological outcomes, depression, anxiety, distress, quality of life, fatigue, sleep, pediatric oncology, complementary therapy, treatment-related symptoms
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Feasibility Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Neoplasms, Quality of Life, Yoga
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