EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL
APRIL 30, 2007
APS Contact
Donna Krupa
Office: (301) 634-7209
Cell: (703) 967-2751
dkrupa@the-aps.org
Newsroom Opens at 12:00 p.m.
Saturday April 28
APS Newsroom
East Registration Area
Washington Convention Center
APS Press Room: (202) 249-4174
Iyengar Yoga Can Promote
Well-Being In Women Breast Cancer Survivors
New
study finds improved quality of life is associated with changes in
lymphocyte cell signaling
WASHINGTON – Breast cancer is the most prevalent
type of invasive cancer attacking women in the United States. Last year
alone some 213,000 women were diagnosed with the disease. The good news is
that two million women have survived. Many women with breast cancer seek
complementary interventions that will enhance their quality of life. Yet
research is lacking whether these programs such as yoga, also benefit immune
function.
A new study of breast cancer survivors practicing
Iyengar yoga – a form of yoga that incorporates all of the components of
physical fitness and focuses on structural alignment of the body as well as
mental relaxation – has found that breast cancer survivors who practice yoga
have changes in the way their immune cells respond to activation signals,
which may be important for understanding how physical activity and
meditative practices benefit the immune system. The function of genes in
immune cells can be regulated by proteins called transcription factors.
Transcription factor nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) is linked to immune cell
activation and to the stress response.
The study, entitled Down-regulated
lymphocyte NF-κB activation in breast cancer
survivors following yoga participation, was conducted by Pamela E.
Schultz, Mel Haberman, Ph.D., Kenn Daratha, Ph.D., Sally E. Blank, Ph.D.,
from Washington State University, and Joni Nichols, M.D., from Cancer Care
Northwest (US Oncology), in Spokane, WA. They will discuss their findings
at the 120th annual meeting of the American Physiological Society
(APS;
www.the-APS.org), being held as part of the Experimental Biology (EB
’07) meeting. More than 12,000 scientists and researchers are attending the
conference, being held April 28-May 2, 2007 at the Washington, DC Convention
Center.
Methodology
Active practice of Iyengar
yoga, named for its creator B.K.S. Iyengar, differs from the gentle
restorative practices typically offered to cancer survivors as it can
include all the components of physical fitness. The active practice of
âsanas (postures) can incorporate cardiovascular endurance, muscular
strength and endurance, flexibility and balance.
Nineteen women, average
age 61 years, diagnosed with stage I-III breast cancer and receiving
antiestrogen or aromatase inhibitor hormonal therapy participated in the
study. Time since diagnosis was approximately four years. None had any
experience with Iyengar yoga. The subjects were randomized to either yoga
(n=10) or a wait-list control group (n=9).
Beginning level Iyengar
yoga classes were conducted two times per week for eight weeks and included
the following yoga poses: standing poses, chest and shoulder openers; and
inversions. The women were given a home instruction sheet to practice once a
week at home a week at home for a total of three yoga sessions per week.
A survey of the subjects demands of
illness and a blood sample to determine lymphocyte NF-κB activation
were collected prior to and following the intervention.
Results
Preliminary findings indicate:
Demands of illness, which reflects the burden and hardship of
breast cancer survivorship, decreased following yoga participation.
Compared with pre-intervention responses, women who
participated in yoga had lower stimulated lymphocyte NF-κB activation after
eight weeks of yoga than did the control group
Decreases in demands of illness were associated with decreased
lymphocyte NF-κB activation in the yoga participants, only.
Conclusions
This study demonstrates that an active yoga practice
taught in the Iyengar tradition can be successfully offered to breast cancer
survivors who are approximately four years out from initial cancer diagnosis
and who are receiving certain types of hormonal therapy. It also shows that
the program can have important psychological benefits for breast cancer
surivors. This study is an important addition to the literature on the
effectiveness of yoga intervention on the quality of life for female breast
cancer survivors and that these changes may be associated with cell
signaling regulating lymphocyte function.
***
The
American Physiological Society (APS) has been an integral part of the
scientific discovery process since it was established in 1887.
Physiology is the study of how molecules, cells, tissues and organs function
to create health or disease.
# # #
NOTE TO EDITORS: The APS annual meeting is part
of the Experimental Biology 2007 (EB ’07) gathering and will be held April
28-May 2, 2007 at the Washington, DC Convention Center. To schedule an
interview with a member of the research team, please contact Donna Krupa in
the newsroom at 202.249.4174, 301.634.7209 (direct dial), 703.967.2751
(cell) or
DKrupa@the-APS.org.
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