This Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Senior Research Fellow Dr David Mizrahi, PhD, and his team from The Daffodil Centre, a joint venture between Cancer Council NSW and the University of Sydney, want to share the importance and effectiveness of personalised exercise in a child's routine post cancer treatment to help them be happy and healthy.
"After cancer treatment, children often feel fatigued, but gentle movement can be a powerful tool to help them feel better, both physically and emotionally. Research shows that personalised exercise routines-tailored to each child's energy and ability-can safely support recovery and boost confidence." – Dr David Mizrahi, Senior Research Fellow at the Daffodil Centre.
A child's body might need a little extra care after cancer treatment; movement is safe and can help in amazing ways. Structured exercise programs are not always provided for children who have survived cancer, by providing research proven resources and education to encourage a personalised exercise routine at home enables children to improve their health post cancer treatment.
"Parents play a vital role in their child's recovery after cancer treatment, and knowing that movement is safe and beneficial can make all the difference. With the right guidance, families can help their child implement a personalised physical activity routine. Knowing what is right for your child after cancer treatment can be overwhelming, but if they take it at the child's pace, they'll see all the benefits." – Dr David Mizrahi, Senior Research Fellow at the Daffodil Centre.
Physical activity helps the body recover, it reduces feelings of tiredness, improves sleep, improves mood, helps the heart stay strong, increases happiness and confidence and gives a brain boost!
For children introducing exercise after cancer treatment, it's all about having fun while helping muscles and bones stay strong. There are many ways to re-introduce exercise, but it's important to do it in ways that match the child's energy and ability. Examples of easy ways to re-introduce exercise are playing in the park, going for walks, or dancing.
"Exercise allowed Ashton to reach his basic milestones such as rolling, crawling and walking following his treatment. Exercise offered Ashton's body and muscles guidance and assistance in strengthening and healing post chemotherapy and transplant and allowed him to be a child again" - Natasha, mother of Ashton who was born with congenital Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML), a form of blood cancer that only affects 1 in 5 million people. Read Ashton's story here.
Even a little bit of movement each day makes a big difference, the key to getting stronger and fitter is to start at a level that feels right to the child. The recent study says, when the child starts to feel stronger and improves their fitness, they should slowly increase their activity in time or difficulty; this is referred to as activity pacing.
It's okay to not have linear progress, on days when the child is tired or not feeling well it's okay to make the exercise simpler, reducing the length and or difficulty.
Exercise is categorised into three types: light, moderate and vigorous. Choosing the right intensity helps get the most exercise whilst still feeling good. To judge what's right, the child needs to listen to their body, adjust to suit their needs and be sure to celebrate progress!
To ensure the importance and benefits could be shared with children Dr David Mizrahi, PhD developed a series of videos to share this information with children and their families post cancer treatment.
Introduction to Physical Activity
Fighting fatigue with physical activity
If you need to talk about cancer, call Cancer Council on 13 11 20.
