Prehab — exercise, nutritional changes, psychological support — could reduce complications, hospital stays.
Christopher Wanczycki loved to ski and work up a sweat outdoors before his advanced cancer diagnosis. Such exercise may have actually helped shorten his recovery after surgery, according to the findings of a large review.
Wanczycki, 65, was told he had a five centimetre diameter tumour in May 2021. The Ottawa resident had aggressive radiation and chemotherapy to shrink the tumour in his rectum.
When his oncologist also recommended surgery, Wanczycki enrolled in a clinical trial at Ottawa Hospital to help him prepare.
The trial was centred on prehabilitation, or prehab — a program of exercise, enhanced nutrition, psychological support and cognitive training aimed at helping patients recover more quickly. The lengths of the program vary from weeks to months depending on the type of surgery.
“You need something to motivate you to get through it,” Wanczycki said. “I looked at the prehab as something that I could use to kind of push me through the treatments and get me through the surgery as well.”
A systematic review published in Wednesday’s issue of the medical journal BMJ backs up Wanczycki’s experience. Researchers examined data from a variety of studies and concluded prehab could reduce complications and hospital stays after surgery, as well as improve patients’ quality of life.
Published on February 19, 2025
