Table 1.

Details on interventions in colorectal cancer surgery prehabilitation programs.

Author; Year	Prehabilitation Group			Control Group
	Type of Intervention (Unimodal vs. Multimodal)	Timing	Interventions Used for Prehabilitation
Berkel et al. [26]; 2022	Unimodal	Start three weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: personalized supervised exercise program consisting of 60-mintraining sessions combining 40 min of moderate-to-high intensity interval training on a cycle ergometer to improve aerobic fitness and 20 min of resistance training to improve peripheral muscle strength.	Standard of care
Alejo et al. [29]; 2019	Unimodal	Start during five weeks of CRT and continuation for additional 6–8 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: 6 practical classes on aerobic (running and walking at RPE = 6–10), resistance (exercises for biceps, triceps, chest, abdominal, lumbar, quadriceps, iliotibial tract, and calves), and outdoor flexibility exercises conducted in a park.	N/A
Morielli et al. [30]; 2021	Unimodal	Start during neoadjuvant CRT.	Exercise intervention: personalized HIIT exercise program on a treadmill. Each HIIT session consisted of a 2-min, high-intensity interval completed at 85% of VO2 peak followed by 2 min of active recovery completed at 40% of VO2 peak. The number of HIIT intervals started with five and progressed by one every other session until participants reached the maximum number of 8 intervals.	Standard of care
West et al. [16]; 2015	Unimodal	Start 6 weeks before surgery during neoadjuvant CRT.	Exercise intervention: in-hospital supervised exercise training program consisting of 40 min interval training on a cycle ergometer. The exercise intensity was modified based on individual ramped CPET protocol results.	Standard of care
Moug et al. [31]; 2019	Unimodal	Start before neoadjuvant CRT; a minimum of 13 weeks duration: 5 weeks during neoadjuvant CRT followed by a minimum of 8 weeks of exercises before surgery.	Exercise intervention: initial exercise counseling session was followed by a 13–17-week telephone-guided walking program. The program was targeted at counting steps: during the first eight weeks, the step count goal was gradually increased from the baseline and then maintained or increased over the remaining weeks. The target was to increase the average daily step count by 3000 over the baseline by week 8.	Standard of care
Moug et al. [32]; 2020	Unimodal	Start before neoadjuvant CRT; a minimum of 13 weeks duration: 5 weeks during neoadjuvant CRT followed by a minimum of 8 weeks of exercises before surgery.	Exercise intervention: initial exercise counseling session was followed by a 13–17-week telephone-guided walking program. The program was targeted at counting steps: during the first eight weeks, the step count goal was gradually increased from the baseline and then maintained or increased over the remaining weeks. The target was to increase the average daily step count by 3000 over the baseline by week 8.	Standard of care
Singh et al. [33]; 2017	Unimodal	Start over a period of 16 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: supervised exercise program consisting of two 60-minute aerobic and resistance exercise sessions per week. Resistance exercises aimed at training the major muscle groups included seated row, chest press, latissimus dorsi pull-down, leg extension, curl, and press exercises. The aerobic exercise included walking or jogging, or a treadmill, or cycling, or rowing.	N/A
Singh et al. [34]; 2018	Unimodal	Start over a period of 10 weeks during neoadjuvant CRT.	Exercise intervention: supervised program consisting of aerobic and resistance exercises. Resistance exercises aimed at training the major muscle groups included seated row, chest press, latissimus dorsi pull-down, leg extension, curl, and press exercises. The aerobic exercise included walking or jogging, or a treadmill, or cycling, or rowing.	N/A
Heldens et al. [35]; 2016	Unimodal	Start during neoadjuvant CRT, and the exact duration depending on the individual decision for surgery timing.	Exercise intervention: supervised individualized endurance and resistance exercise program. The endurance program utilized treadmill and cycling exercises. Chest and leg press, along with the lateral pull down at 40% 1-RM, were used in the resistance exercise program.	N/A
Loughney et al. [36]; 2017	Unimodal	Start after completion of neoadjuvant CRT; 6-week duration.	Exercise intervention: supervised in-hospital exercise training program. Training intensity was determined individually by the results of CPET at weeks 0 and 3. Exercise training included 40 min of interval training on an electromagnetically braked cycle ergometer with alternating intensity.	Standard of care
Gillis et al. [37]; 2019	Multimodal	Started 4 weeks before surgery; continued 8 weeks after surgery.	Exercise intervention: both groups carried out a home-based exercise program with one group additionally employing supervised group exercise sessions once per week Nutrition intervention: individualized counseling on diet and supplementation with whey protein. Additionally, the individualized nutrition care plans focused on alleviating cancer-related symptoms, blood glucose control, optimization of body composition, and optimizing nutrient intake guided by actual intake of those nutrients. Anxiety-reducing intervention: deep breathing exercises along with individualized relaxation exercises.	Patients receiving rehabilitation
Gillis et al. [38]; 2016	Unimodal	Start 4 weeks before surgery; continued for 4 weeks after surgery.	Nutrition intervention: 90 min. Counseling sessions by a registered dietitian to assess nutritional status; individualized nutrition care plan with daily supplements guided by analysis of food consumption and estimated daily needs. An appropriate quantity of whey protein supplement was used to compensate for the estimated deficit in daily protein consumption.	Individualized nutrition counseling with a non-nutritive placebo
Furyk et al. [39]; 2021	Multimodal	Start 4 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: personalized supervised program consisting of three 1-hour sessions of aerobic and resistance exercises each week performed on non-consecutive days. The sessions included 30 min strength and core/balance circuit followed by 20 min of aerobic exercise. Nutrition intervention: Personalized dietary counseling in line with Australian Dietary Guidelines.	Standard of care
Bousquet-Dion et al. [40]; 2018	Multimodal	Start 4 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: home-based exercise program with an additional supervised workout session. Nutrition intervention: personalized dietary counseling with daily whey protein supplementation. Additionally, the customized nutrition care plans focused on alleviating cancer-related symptoms, blood glucose control, optimization of body composition, and optimizing nutrient intake guided by actual intake of those nutrients. Anxiety-reducing intervention: deep breathing instructions and personalized relaxation exercises.	Standard of care
Tweed et al. [41]; 2021	Multimodal	Start 4 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: Personalized, supervised strength and aerobic training program. For the strength training, six functional upper and lower body push-pull exercises were used (shoulder press, chest press, lateral pull down, deadlift, leg press, seated row). Aerobic training consisted of HIIT on the cycle ergometer; an exercise intensity was guided by personal ventilatory thresholds measured with CPET. Nutrition intervention: three freshly prepared high-protein meals and three snacks per day. The nutrients contained the required amount of protein and calories as calculated by the dietitian. Patients were not permitted to eat other foods.	N/A
Klerk et al. [42]; 2021	Multimodal	Start at least 4 weeks before surgery; duration was adjusted based on the date of surgery.	Exercise intervention: Personalized, supervised high-intensity training and individual low-intensity training. Nutrition intervention: individualized nutritional advice to meet energy and protein needs. Other interventions: Outpatient clinic consults on smoking and alcohol cessation, preoperative anemia treatment, polypharmacy reduction.	Standard of care
Arias et al. [27]; 2021	Multimodal	Start 30 days before surgery; continued for 30 days after hospital discharge.	Exercise intervention: Combination of aerobic and muscular resistance exercises performed at home for the approximate duration of 30–45 min, guided by a video playlist. Nutrition intervention: Dietary recommendations, nutritional supplementation with protein-rich and high in vitamin D and CaHMB content foods. Relaxation exercises: Breathing and relaxation exercises.	Standard of care
Karlsson et al. [43]; 2019	Unimodal	Start at least 2 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: Inspiratory muscle training performed using the handheld electronic device Power Breathe K3; functional strength workouts performing high-intensity exercises (such as chair stands and step-ups with weight belts) and endurance training (such as interval walking indoors and/or outdoors, bouts of stair climbing, and Nordic walking outdoors).	Standard of care
West et al. [44]; 2019	Unimodal	Start 6 weeks before surgery.	Exercise intervention: Tailored exercise program consisting of 40 min interval training using an electromagnetically braked cycle ergometer.	Standard of care
Li et al. [17]; 2013	Multimodal	The start date was predetermined by the time remaining until surgery alone.	Exercise intervention: Aerobic exercise sessions (30 min of walking or using an aerobic exercise machine) combined with resistance training (calisthenics and elastic band movements). Nutrition intervention: Excess alcohol or fat intake reduction counseling; whey protein isolate provided to guarantee a daily intake of protein. Anxiety-reducing intervention: relaxation and breathing exercises.	Standard of care

N/A—not applicable; CRT—chemoradiotherapy; HIIT—high-intensity interval training; CaHMB—calcium-β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate.