The quality of life of children with cancer is higher if they initiate physical rehabilitation in the debut of the disease.

-Adapted to the patient to the disability that can generate and provide comfort and welfare

– prevent the physical desacondicionamiento and anticipate the patient to the deficit expected after surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy

-the Spanish society of rehabilitation and physical medicine, SERMEF, sensitizing the population and to the medical community that the physical rehabilitation should form part the comprehensive treatment of children with cancer

Madrid, February 2011.- the quality of life of children with cancer is higher if they initiate physical debut of disease rehabilitation because it prevents the physical desacondicionamiento, anticipates and prepares the patient to the deficit expected after cancer treatments such as surgerychemotherapy, or radiation therapy.

DRA. “Natalia Nieva Rodríguez, the service of physical medicine and rehabilitation of the Hospital Universitario San Juan de Dios de Barcelona, has made these statements on the occasion of World Cancer day, which was held on 4 February, to awareness of the importance of the treatments rehabilitation since the debut of the disease”.

Improving survival from childhood cancer makes this disease a chronic process leading practitioners to raise much more extensive treatment approaches with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life for these patients.

In this sense, the specialist, Member of the Spanish society of physical medicine and rehabilitation, SERMEF, explains that the rehabilitation helps achieve maximum physical, social, psychological, performance and the highest level of autonomy of individuals, acting on the limitations or consequences resulting from the disease itself or its treatment ”.

Notes, however, that the lack of knowledge by the team of professionals of this need to start rehabilitation diagnosis, coupled with the difficulty of establishing rehabilitation programmes for these patients, limit intervention by the teams of rehabilitation ”.

Also points out that by the connotations of the disease itself both its sequels are a challenge for rehabilitation whose objectives will be in constant redefinition ”.

So it is not surprising that in many centres, the introduction of rehabilitation is delayed waiting for the patient. The future goes towards the creation of adaptation to cancer teams ” in that oncologists and rehabilitation are in permanent communication ”, says.

On the other hand, the DRA. of the Hospital San Juan de Dios de Barcelona says that rehabilitation aims to prevent the desacondicionamiento physical, anticipate the deficit expected after surgery, regain function and the level of personal autonomy, acting on the limitations or consequences resulting from the disease itself and/or its treatments. Or adapt to the patient and the child disability and provide comfort and welfare ”.

For more than six years, the service of rehabilitation of the Hospital San Juan de Dios is an active part of the interdisciplinary team of cancer treatment. This has allowed us to meet patients from the debut, participate in therapeutic decisions and adapt the rehabilitation programme for every case and in every moment of the disease ”, said DRA. Rodriguez.

On the Oncology floor they have a treatment room with all the material necessary to carry out treatment of physiotherapy in a protected environment. In regime of income, all children receive physiotherapy treatment on a daily basis. Which can be in the room, that no, in your own room. Who has discharged to continue on an outpatient or home ”, underlines.

From the beginning are encouraged to patients and their carers to participate and to combat a sedentary lifestyle and work patterns are given in the times of day that the therapist is not in the room. To motivate them is provided material from work as portable exercise bike, weights, elastic bands, etc.

Both adults and children, programs that offer some benefit are those who focus on aerobic activity overseen for several weeks. With this training will improve the values of maximum oxygen consumption, considered by the World Health Organization, an indicator of health and predictor of mortality. Children perform better when they start in the phase of active treatment in hospital system, which remain in the maintenance phase ”, indicates the Dr. Rodríguez.

Is known that until many years later of having completed treatment, surviving children can continue in a situation of physical desacondicionamiento and there is much evidence of the beneficial effects of programmes of physical training in these patients. For this reason, perform a program of training effort whose ultimate goal is the re-introduction of the sport ”, concludes.