Approximately 40% of Americans will receive cancer treatment at some point in their lives.
A British study also found that toxic tumor-fighting chemicals in chemotherapy and invasive surgeries that involve removing entire organs are responsible for the deaths of about a quarter of patients.
But one expert says there's one thing you can do to give yourself the best chance of surviving this situation.
Dr. Lauren Yancey, an eye surgeon based at the Vision Institute of Georgia who studies vision loss due to cancer, described one activity that can strengthen your body before treatment and greatly increase your chances of survival. .
“What are my best chances of fighting cancer?” she said in a video posted to her TikTok channel, which has racked up 5 million views. “It's actually muscle mass.”
She added that in her experience, when people are diagnosed with cancer, they want to focus on “active” things that can help improve their prognosis.
“Here are my top tips on how to best survive cancer if you get it. We humans have a very high chance of getting cancer in our lifetime. I know too.
“If you are undergoing cancer treatment, the best thing you can have before you start that treatment is to have adequate muscle mass.
“We know that chemotherapy drugs deplete skeletal muscle. If you don't start with enough muscle mass, you're already starting with zero tank.
About a quarter of cancer patients die from treatments intended to help them. Studies have shown that one of the most common reasons for this is due to loss of muscle mass.
“Weightlifting, weight training, and building muscle mass can not only help you in your daily life, but they can also be lifesaving if you need cancer treatment.
“We need to be strong and healthy…and strong means healthy.”
A 2021 study published in the Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network concluded that muscle mass not only correlates with survival from advanced cancer, but also with symptom burden.
Experts say having enough muscle is important for posture, balance, power, and, of course, strength.
The more you have, the more likely you are to maintain your independence and engage in physical activity. This has many benefits for the body's immune system.
In addition to increasing protein intake, cancer experts recommend that patients do weight-bearing exercises as often as possible, such as lifting dumbbells and doing push-ups.
