Diet and Physical Activity Behaviors of Breast Cancer Survivors: A Scoping Review

This scoping review explored insight into the current evidence on adherence to health behavior guidelines, specifically diet and physical activity among breast cancer survivors.

A scoping review was conducted through databases including PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, and SPORTDiscus with Full Text in November 2022, following the JBI methodology. The search strategy combined the keywords i) diet OR nutrition OR eating OR exercise OR physical activity OR fitness and ii) breast cancer survivors OR patients with breast cancer.

Twelve original research studies were included; most were conducted in the United States (50%), followed by the European countries (33.34%). Most studies exclusively focused on physical activity (83.33%) and assessed adherence to the physical activity guidelines for Americans (30%), along with the American Cancer Society (20%) and American College of Sports Medicine (20%) guidelines. Overweight or obesity, comorbidity, race, and quality of life were reported as factors associated with physical activity. Independence of disease status was significantly associated with fruit and vegetable intake.

Studies reported a wide range of prevalence of adherence to dietary and physical activity recommendations among breast cancer survivors. Further studies are needed to explore diet and physical activity in the context of factors affecting these behaviors among cancer survivors to support the development of healthy behavior, improve health outcomes, and reduce the disease burden among this population.

Nurses have a key role in educating and coordinating multidiscipline teams to initiate and provide cancer survivorship care. These findings indicate that nurses should consider developing targeted strategies and education to promote dietary patterns and physical activity adherence among breast cancer survivors.