Effects of Dance-Based Exercise on Health Indicators in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Dance-based exercise has been increasingly explored as a complementary intervention in oncology, with potential benefits for physical, psychological, and social health. However, evidence remains inconsistent, and the overall strength of evidence has not been clearly established. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effects of dance-based exercise on health indicators in individuals with cancer.

A systematic search of the literature was conducted in April 2025. Randomized controlled trials investigating dance-based interventions in adults with cancer were included. Outcomes of interest were quality of life, depression, and stress. Methodological quality was assessed using the PEDro scale, and certainty of evidence was evaluated using the GRADE approach. Where outcome measures were comparable, random-effects meta-analyses were performed using standardized mean differences (SMD) with 95% confidence intervals.

Meta-analytic results indicated that dance-based exercise significantly improved physical aspects of quality of life (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.61, 95% CI [0.07, 1.15], P = .03). A positive but non-significant trend was observed for the social/family component of quality of life (SMD = 0.87, 95% CI [-0.21, 1.95], P = .11). Heterogeneity across studies was high for both analyses. For depression and stress, pooled results did not reach statistical significance, although several individual trials reported improvements, particularly among participants with higher baseline stress levels. Evidence was very low to low quality.

Overall, findings suggest that dance-based exercise represents a feasible and beneficial complementary intervention that can enhance selected dimensions of quality of life among cancer patients. Further research employing standardized intervention protocols and consistent outcome measures is needed to better characterize the magnitude and specificity of effects across psychological and physical health domains.