Tai Chi Chuan improves cytokine expression levels and quality of life in post chemotherapy breast cancer survivors

Abstract

Background: This study investigated the effects of Tai Chi Chuan (TCC) exercise on biological markers and psychological factors of breast carcinoma patients diagnosed with advanced invasive ductal carcinoma. Methods: Sixty breast cancer patients, and 50 healthy female subjects. Patients underwent a mastectomy for invasive ductal carcinoma, and completed 4 cycles of 5-fluorouracil, epirubicin and cyclophosphamide chemotherapy. Peripheral blood was drawn from subjects to analyze the biological markers, namely white blood cell (WBC) and red blood cell (RBC) count and cytokine levels (IL2, IL4, IL6, IFN-γ and TNF-α). Following treatment, the patients participated in a TCC program for 12 months. Biomarkers and hand grip strength were measured at baseline, 6 and 12 months after TCC practice. A psychological factor-based questionnaire was also conducted. Results: After 12 months of TCC, the levels of cytokines of patients achieved no statistically significant difference compared to healthy controls. The total WBC count was 7.55 ± 1.25 (p<0.05), and the total RBC count was 4.62±1.25 (p<0.05). Patients noticed improvements in short term memory. Following 12 months of TCC practice, patients also had stronger hand grip strength with baseline. Conclusions: TCC exercise can recommended for the rehabilitation of post-treatment breast cancer patients for biological and psychological improvements.