For many years, women living with metastatic breast cancer were often excluded from exercise research and, at times, unintentionally excluded from conversations about rehabilitation, recovery, and supportive care. A new pilot randomized trial challenges that outdated assumption with a powerful message:
Women living with metastatic breast cancer can successfully increase physical activity—and behavior change support may help make those changes sustainable.
Exercise Is Not Just for Early-Stage Cancer
Exercise Oncology has traditionally focused on patients with early-stage disease. Yet advances in treatment mean many individuals with metastatic breast cancer are living longer—and deserve evidence-based interventions that improve daily function, independence, and quality of life.
This study tested a practical question:
Can a remotely delivered, home-based physical activity program helps women with metastatic breast cancer become more active?
The answer appears encouraging.
The Study: Small Changes, Big Possibilities
Twenty women living with metastatic breast cancer participated in a 12-week remote program.
All participants received:
- A physical activity recommendation targeting 150 minutes per week of moderate activity
- A Fitbit activity tracker
- Educational materials
- Nine phone/video coaching sessions
- Goal-setting and self-monitoring tools
One group received standard recommendations.
The second group received something more personalized:
- Motivation coaching
- Barrier identification
- Social support strategies
- Behavioral reinforcement
- Motivational interviewing
- Individualized goal progression
What Happened?
The program worked remarkably well for a metastatic population.
Key findings included:
- 63% recruitment rate
- 80% retention rate
- 76% adherence to scheduled sessions
- Strong participant satisfaction and acceptability
Participants reported:
- Greater confidence to remain active
- Improved ability to manage symptoms
- Better treatment tolerance
- Increased belief that physical activity could remain part of their lives long-term
Importantly, women receiving personalized behavior-change support generally experienced greater improvements in physical function and patient-specific outcomes than those receiving generic advice alone.
Why This Matters for Exercise Oncology
This publication reinforces one of the central principles of CancerFitness.org:
Exercise is not reserved for survivors after treatment—it can be integrated across the entire cancer journey, including metastatic disease.
Perhaps the most important insight was not simply whether activity minutes increased.
It was that women:
- Stayed engaged
- Felt empowered
- Built confidence
- Reported improvements that mattered to daily life
Participants identified meaningful goals such as:
- Walking stairs
- Gardening
- Shopping independently
- Hiking
- Yoga
- Dancing
- Returning to everyday routines and hobbies
That is Exercise Oncology in action: restoring function, agency, and quality of life.
Looking Ahead: The Future May Be Remote, Personalized, and Scalable
This study suggests that remote Exercise Oncology models—supported by coaching, wearable technology, and behavior change techniques—may offer an accessible and scalable way to reach more patients living with advanced cancer.
Future programs may evolve into multidisciplinary, stepped-care models that combine:
- Exercise physiology
- Resistance training
- Nutrition counseling
- Behavioral coaching
- Social support
- Digital monitoring
CancerFitness.org Call-to-Action
If you are living with metastatic breast cancer—or caring for someone who is—ask a simple but important question:
“What role should physical activity play in my treatment and survivorship plan?”
Exercise does not need to begin with a gym membership or intense workouts.
It can begin with a walk, a conversation, a goal, and support.
At CancerFitness.org, we believe every cancer patient deserves access to safe, personalized Exercise Oncology programs—because movement is not about curing cancer.
Movement is about living better while living with cancer.
Reference: Behaviour Change for Physical Activity Is Feasible and Effective in Women Living with Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Pilot Two-Arm Randomised Trial.
Mark Liu, Sharon Kilbreath, Jasmine Yee, Jane Beith and Elizabeth Dylke. Cancers 2026, 18, 338 https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18020338
