Table 1 Positive effects of exercise training and physical activity in colorectal cancer patients and animal models

Colbert (2001)

29,133 men

50–69 years old

occupational and leisure-time activities

findings provide further evidence of an inverse association between physical activity and colon cancer

The relationship appeared to be stronger in the distal colon, rather than the proximal colon, and a similar association was seen for rectal cancer

[14]

Thune (2001)

40,674 patients

N/A

Occupational physical activity

Leisure time physical activity

A dose–response effect of physical activity on colon cancer risk was especially observed

[15]

Chao (2004)

940 colon and 390 rectal cancer patients

Mean age of 63 years old

Recreational Physical Activity

Increasing amounts of time spent at recreational physical activity are associated with substantially lower risk of colon cancer

Recreational physical activity is associated with lower risk of rectal cancer in older men and women

[16]

Calton (2006)

31,783 women

Mean age of 61 years old

Daily physical activity

Data do not support the hypothesis that physical activity is related to a lower incidence of colon cancer

[17]

Mai (2007)

120,147 participants

22–84 years old

Lifetime recreational physical activity

Lifetime recreational physical activity may protect against colon cancer among postmenopausal women who have never used hormone therapy

Among hormone therapy users, who have lower risk of colon cancer, recreational physical activity does not seem to provide any additional benefit

With declining rates of hormone therapy use, physical activity offers one possible means for reducing women's colon cancer risk

[18]

Coups (2008)

1932 respondents to the Health Information National Trends Survey

18–70 years old

Moderate-intensity activities

There is poor awareness among U.S. adults of the role that physical activity plays in preventing colon cancer

[19]

Wolin (2010)

158,253 participants

N/A

Regular long-term physical activity

Regular long-term physical activity was associated with a lower risk of colon cancer mortality

[20]

Boyle (2011)

870 cases

40–71 years old

Recreational Physical

Physical activity may have a greater effect on the risk of distal colon cancer than proximal colon cancer

Vigorous physical activity is required to reduce colorectal cancer risk

[21]

Sanchez (2012)

548 patients

Mean age of 58 years old

BMI of 27

Exercised for at least one hour per week

Exercise was an independent negative predictor for the presence of adenomas anywhere in the colon

Patients who reported exercising one or more hours weekly had a lower prevalence of any polyps

[22]

Kuiper (2012)

1,339 participants

Mean age of 65 years

Recreational physical activity

Patients reporting activity levels ofC18 MET-h/week had significantly lower colorectal cancer-specific mortality

[23]

Weijenberg (2013)

120,852 participants

55–69 years old

Occupational physical activity

Regular long-term physical activity and fewer sitting hours may protect against colon cancer, particularly distal colon cancer

[24]

Moore (2016)

1.44 million participants

Median [range] age, 59 [19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,41,42,43,44,45,46,47,48,49,50,51,52,53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60,61,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,74,75,76,77,78,79,80,81,82,83,84,85,86,87,88,89,90,91,92,93,94,95,96,97,98] years old

Leisure-time physical activity of a moderate to vigorous intensity

Leisure-time physical activity was associated with lower risks of colon cancer

[25]

Aleksandrova (2017)

519 978 participants

25–70 years old

High physical activity

Promoting physical activity, particularly outdoors could represent a promising strategy for colon cancer prevention

[26]

Mahmood (2018)

23,586 patients

27 to 76 years old

Recreational activity

Recreational activity was associated with reduced CRC risk. A non-significant, inverse association was observed for occupational activity, whereas no association was found for transport or household domains

[27]

Animal models

Baltgalvis (2009)

48 Apc(Min/ +) mice

Four-week-old male mice

Regular moderate-intensity treadmill exercise (18 m/min, 60 min/d, 6 d/wk)

The induction of adiposity, inflammation, and immunosuppression by the Western-style diet may compromise the beneficial effect of moderate-intensity exercise on the intestinal polyp burden in Apc(Min/ +) mice

[28]

Kelly (2017)

N/A

Eight-weeks of age male mice

Voluntary running wheel access

The results indicate that voluntary exercise should be used as a preventative measure to reduce risk for environmentally induced CRC with the realization that the extent of protection may depend on genetic background

[29]