Background: Although physical activity is recommended for patients with cancer, changes in physical activity across cancer diagnosis and treatment have not been objectively evaluated.
Objective: To assess the impact of cancer diagnosis and treatment on physical activity levels.
Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study using a Japanese claims database provided by DeSC Healthcare Inc., in which daily step count data, derived from smartphone pedometers, are linked to the claims data. In this study, we included patients newly diagnosed with cancer, along with those newly diagnosed with diabetes mellitus for reference. We collected data between April 2014 and September 2021 and analyzed. The observation period spanned from 6 months before diagnosis to 12 months after diagnosis. We applied a generalized additive mixed model with a cubic spline to describe changes in step counts before and after diagnosis.
Results: We analyzed the step count data of 326 patients with malignant solid tumors and 1388 patients with diabetes. Patients with cancer exhibited a 9.6% reduction in step counts from baseline at the start of the diagnosis month [95% confidence interval (CI) 7.1%, 12.1%; P < .001], which further deepened to 12.4% at 3 months [95% CI 9.5%, 15.2%; P < .001] and persisted at 7.1% at 12 months [95% CI 4.2%, 10.0%; P < .001], all relative to baseline. Conversely, in patients with diabetes, step counts remained relatively stable after diagnosis, with a slight upward trend, resulting in a change of +0.6% from baseline at 3 months after diagnosis [95% CI -0.6%, +1.9%; P = .31]. At 12 months after diagnosis, step counts remained decreased in the nonendoscopic subdiaphragmatic surgery group, with an 18.0% reduction [95% CI 9.1%, 26.2%; P < .001], whereas step counts returned to baseline in the laparoscopic surgery group (+0.3% [95% CI -6.3%, 7.5%; P = .93]).
Conclusions: The analysis of objective pre- and postdiagnostic step count data provided fundamental information crucial for understanding changes in physical activity among patients with cancer. While cancer diagnosis and treatment reduced physical activity, the decline may have already started before diagnosis. The study findings may help tailor exercise recommendations based on lifelog data for patients with cancer in the future.