Is absolute amount or change in exercise more associated with quality of life in adult cancer survivors?

Background. The present study examined the association between quality of life (QOL) in adult cancer survivors and the (a) absolute current amount of exercise and (b) change in exercise since cancer diagnosis. Methods. Three hundred fifty-two (mean age = 59.6) adult cancer survivors recruited from outpatient clinics in four states (Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Georgia) and a minority support groups completed a survey including demographic, medical, exercise behavior, and QOL questions. Results. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses controlling for important demographic and medical variables showed that adult cancer survivors who currently exercised three times per week had significantly higher QOL than those who did not (β = 0.13, P < 0.05). Furthermore, compared to adult cancer survivors who exercised less since their cancer diagnosis, those who maintained (β = 0.28, P < 0.08) or increased (β = 0.24, P < 0.01) the amount of exercise they performed since their cancer diagnosis had significantly higher QOL. Finally, examination of the ΔR_adjusted² between the two exercise models showed that the absolute current amount of exercise explained an additional 1% (ΔR_adjusted² = 0.01 P < 0.05) of the variance in QOL whereas the change in exercise explained an additional 7% (ΔR _adjusted² = 0.07, P < 0.01) Conclusion. Change in exercise since cancer diagnosis may be a more important correlate of QOL in adult cancer survivors than the absolute current amount of exercise.