Table 1.
Descriptive characteristics of the study participants overall and by intervention group
| Exercise (n = 32) | Control (n = 28) | |
|---|---|---|
| Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | |
| Age, years | 52.6 (8.8) | 52.0 (9.4) |
| Marital status (married/single/divorced/widow, n (%) | 26 (81.3)/1 (3.1)/4 (12.5)/1 (3.1) | 18 (64.3)/5 (17.9)/5 (17.9)/0 (0) |
| Educational level (no studies/primary/secondary/university, %) | 0 (0)/4 (12.5)/9 (28.1)/19 (59.4) | 1 (3.6)/2 (7.1)/7 (25.0)/19 (64.3) |
| Occupational status (working/housewife/not working, %) | 20 (62.5)/4 (12.5)/8 (25.0) | 21 (65.0)/1 (3.6)/6 (21.3) |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 27.4 (4.2) | 26.3 (5.3) |
| SBP (mm/Hg) | 114.8 (16.1) | 118.9 (16.4) |
| DBP (mm/Hg) | 69.6 (9.7) | 73.0 (11.5) |
| Current smoking, n (%) | 3 (9.4) | 3 (10.7) |
| Menopause, n (%) | 20 (62.5) | 19 (67.9) |
| Time since core treatments ended, years* | 3.5 (1–6.75) | 4.5 (2–7) |
| Tumor type, HR + HER2-/HR + HER2 + /HR-HER2 + /HR-HER2- (%) | 59.4/18.8/6.3/15.6 | 71.4/17.9/0.0/10.7 |
| Surgical procedure, n (%): tumorectomy/mastectomy | 22 (69)/10 (31) | 19 (68)/9 (32) |
| Lymph node resection, n (%) | 15 (46.9) | 10 (35.7) |
| Endocrine therapy, n (%) | 27 (84.4) | 25 (89.3) |
| Diagnosed lymphedema, n (%) | 1 (3%) | 5 (18%) |
| Peak isometric muscular strength | ||
| IMTP (N) | 575.3 (255.3) | 670.1 (350.9) |
| Bilateral seated bench press (N) | 197.4 (56.2) | 185.6 (55.5) |
| Bilateral seated row (N) | 211.6 (56.7) | 215.8 (64.2) |
| Right leg unilateral knee extension in closed kinetic chain at 90° (N) | 587.7 (359.9) | 576.3 (258.7) |
| Left leg unilateral knee extension in closed kinetic chain at 90° (N) | 670.8 (445.2) | 668.9 (293.1) |
| Right arm unilateral seated bench press (N) | 107.6 (22.7) | 105.9 (28.0) |
| Left arm unilateral seated bench press (N) | 101.4 (25.1) | 98.5 (29.0) |
| Right arm unilateral seated row (N) | 138.2 (31.6) | 139.5 (34.9) |
| Left arm unilateral seated row (N) | 134.8 (38.4) | 130.6 (38.2) |
| Handgrip strength affected arm (kg) | 25.2 (6.4) | 25.4 (5.8) |
| Handgrip strength nonaffected arm (kg) | 26.6 (5.7) | 26.5 (5.4) |
| Estimated VO2max (mL/kg/min) | 20.5 (4.7) | 21.9 (4.8) |
| Shoulder flexion (affected arm) (°) | 162.0 (19.6) | 165.6 (17.7) |
| Shoulder flexion (nonaffected arm) (°) | 172.8 (11.0) | 174.3 (9.4) |
| Cancer-related fatigue (FACT-F total score, 0–52) | 40.3 (7.2) | 36.4 (10.2) |
| Depressive symptoms (CES-D total score, 0–60) | 15.2 (10.6) | 15.5 (11.0) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (physical well-being, 0–28) | 23.3 (3.8) | 22.1 (4.5) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (social well-being, 0–28) | 22.1 (4.5) | 19.7 (5.2) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (emotional well-being, 0–28) | 17.3 (4.0) | 16.5 (4.8) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (functional well-being, 0–28) | 19.9 (3.6) | 17.8 (3.9) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (breast cancer subscale, 0–40) | 24.3 (4.7) | 23.8 (5.2) |
| HRQoL, FACT-B (total score, 0–148) | 107.0 (14.9) | 99.9 (17.9) |
| Satisfaction with Life Scale (total score, 0–25) | 18.7 (3.2) | 17.8 (4.0) |
SD standard deviation, BMI body mass index, WHR waist-to-height ratio, SBP systolic blood pressure, DBP diastolic blood pressure, HR hormone receptor, HER2, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, IMTP isometric mid-thigh pull, N newtons, FACT-F Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Fatigue, CES-D Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale, HRQoL Health-related quality of life, FACT-B Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast
*Median and interquartile range