Effect of breathing exercises in patients with non-small cell lung cancer receiving surgical treatment: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

IntroductionNon-small cell lung cancer has a high symptom burden, including dyspnea, low exercise capacity, with patients also exhibiting anxiety and depression. Breathing exercises may be an effective method of rehabilitation. However, the evidence for breathing exercises in patients with non-small cell lung cancer receiving surgical treatment is inconclusive. The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of providing breathing exercises to patients with non-small cell lung cancer receiving surgical treatment. MethodsA total of 65 patients were randomly assigned to either a breathing exercises group or a control group (routine care). Breathing exercises commenced at admission and continued until hospital discharge. Dyspnea, inspiratory capacity, 6-min walk distance, anxiety and depression were measured on the day of admission, before surgery, the first day after operation and at discharge from hospital. ResultsAfter preoperative breathing exercises, the intervention group was significantly different in terms of inspiratory capacity (P < 0.001) and 6-min walk distance (P = 0.035) compared with the control group. On the first day after surgery, the intervention group had better inspiratory capacity and dyspnea than the control group. At discharge, dyspnea (P < 0.001), inspiratory capacity (P = 0.003), anxiety (P < 0.001) and depression (P < 0.001) for patients in the intervention group significantly improved compared with controls. ConclusionBreathing exercises may provide a feasible rehabilitation strategy to relieve dyspnea, improve inspiratory capacity and reduce the level of anxiety and depression for non-small cell lung cancer patients receiving surgical treatment.