Medical-Fitness Technician
Certification Course
Part B: Exercise & Patho-Physiology (LM:11-24)
Learning Module 17:
Exercise & Cancer
Study the Learning Module with the Video and take the Quiz.
Learning Objectives 
  • Know the definition and prevalence of cancer.
  • Understand the relationship between exercise and cancer.
Definition: Cancer is a term for diseases in which tissue-specific cells mutate and start dividing (multiplying, growing) without control and can form a mass (benign tumor) or invade (malignant) nearby tissues or travel through the vascular (blood) and lymphatic systems to implant in other parts of the body (metastasis).
Causes of Cancer: The list below includes the most-studied known or suspected risk factors for cancer (alphabetically):
  • Age
  • Alcohol
  • Certain Chemicals
  • Chronic Inflammation
  • Poor Nutrition (lack of cancer fighting nutrients)
  • Hormones
  • Immunosuppression
  • Certain Infectious Agents
  • Obesity
  • Radiation (including sunlight)
  • Tobacco

Prevalence: Early detection methods and cancer treatments have improved over the past 50 years. This has contributed to the apparent increase in the "prevalence" of cancer, because the detection and length of survival of cancer have increased.
  • In 1971, there were 3 million people with cancer (1.5% of the U.S. population).
  • In 2022, there were 18 million people with, or having been treated for, cancer (5.5% of the U.S. population).
  • 67% of cancer patients survive 5 or more years after diagnosis.
  • 18% of cancer patients survive 20 or more years after diagnosis.
  • 64% of cancer patients are age 65 or older.
  • Some types of cancers have lower survival rates than others.
  • Some types of cancers are more easily detected than others.
  • Some types of cancers are treated more effectively than others.
  • The survival from cancer for any individual depends on several factors.
  • Therapeutic lifestyle changes are helpful in preventing and/or surviving many types of cancer.​
Relationship between Exercise & Cancer
Conclusion: Exercise helps prevent all cancers, especially Colon, Breast, and Prostate cancers. (These are the more common types of cancer and have a high fatality rate.) Exercise also helps patients with cancer survive longer.