Fatigue after Cancer
Posted 5/20/2011
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Well, this is another rather depressing article from MedScape about fatigue after cancer treatment maybe accelerating aging. Many of us talk about feeling suddenly older (or even old) after cancer. We have less energy for a while. Our joints ache, and we may move stiffly. The zing is gone. Lots improves with time, but we often are sobered up in a way that may feel like the thrill of youth is gone forever. Here is the introduction and then a link to read more:
Fatigue in Breast Cancer Survivors May Accelerate Aging
May 16, 2011 — Fatigue is a common problem in breast cancer survivors, and a new study suggests that it might be the result of alterations in the autonomic nervous system.
The study, published online March 9 in Psychoneuroendocrinology, provides evidence that fatigue is associated with a maladaptive autonomic profile.
"People who were fatigued had weaker parasympathetic activity than those who weren't," said lead author Christopher Fagundes, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute of Behavioral Medicine Research at Ohio State University in Columbus.
"They had higher sympathetic activity and lower parasympathetic activity," he explained in a statement.
The study authors found that fatigue did not appear to be related to treatment or disease variables, such as type of therapy, time since diagnosis, cancer stage, or amount of time since treatment.
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/742785
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