Rob Newton

I’m pleased to announce the release of my new book, MyExerciseMedicine for Cancer.

This book is written first and foremost for people with cancer, survivors, and their families. I explain—in clear, accessible language—how exercise functions as a medical treatment and how it can be safely and effectively applied adjunct to surgery, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormone, targeted, theranostic, and radiation therapy, as well as throughout long-term recovery.

The content draws on more than 40 years of research and clinical practice in exercise medicine, including over two decades devoted specifically to exercise oncology. While the book is designed to empower patients and families with practical, trustworthy guidance, it is also highly relevant for clinicians seeking to integrate evidence-based exercise prescription into standard oncology care.

Key areas covered include:
• How exercise influences tumor biology and immune function
• Enhancing effectiveness of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiation therapy
• Reducing treatment toxicity and improving tolerance
• Individualizing exercise prescription to different cancer types and stages and comorbidities
• Practical guidance to begin, progress, and maintain exercise safely and systematically

My aim is to provide a resource that supports informed decision-making, improves outcomes, and strengthens the role of exercise oncology as a core component of cancer treatment.

Amazon links:
Kindle eBook: amazon.com/MyExerciseMedi…
Paperback: amazon.com/MyExerciseMedi…
Hardcover: amazon.com/MyExerciseMedi…

Thank you to the many patients, clinicians, and researchers who have contributed to this field. I hope my book proves useful for anyone seeking to apply exercise medicine to cancer treatment and survivorship.

Special thanks to @EdithCowanUni for supporting my work over the past 22 years.

Could protecting muscle health during chemotherapy also help protect memory and thinking?
Our latest review, published in the Journal of Cachexia, Sarcopenia and Muscle, examines the potential connections between chemotherapy-induced skeletal muscle dysfunction and cognitive impairment, and what these mean for exercise oncology.
Chemotherapy can impair mitochondrial function in skeletal muscle, increasing oxidative stress and systemic inflammation. These disturbances may also contribute to inflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction in the brain, affecting neuronal health and cognitive function. Skeletal muscle may therefore be an important part of the explanation for cognitive difficulties associated with chemotherapy.
Drawing together clinical and preclinical evidence, we explore how exercise may influence this muscle–brain connection through improved mitochondrial function, reduced oxidative stress and inflammation, and changes in exercise-responsive signaling, including pathways involving irisin and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Importantly, these are interconnected mechanisms, not effects attributable to a single myokine.
The implication for exercise oncology is to look beyond muscle mass alone. Aerobic exercise targeting cardiorespiratory fitness and mitochondrial health, alongside resistance exercise preserving muscle mass and strength, offers a complementary approach. Further research is needed to establish how these adaptations contribute to cognitive outcomes and how best to prescribe exercise for this purpose.
Congratulations to joint first authors SoYoung ­Ahn and Jin-Soo Kim, and thank you to our co-authors Daniel Galvao, Dennis Taaffe, Dong Hyun Yoon, Carolyn McIntyre, Christelle Schofield, Yoon Jung Chang, Jihee Min, and Wook Song.
This work brings together our @EMRI_ECU at @EdithCowanUni and collaborators at Seoul National University and the National Cancer Center, Republic of Korea.
Read the full open-access review: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jc…
#ExerciseOncology #ExerciseMedicine #CancerResearch #BrainHealth

I have just posted my latest SubStack article: tinyurl.com/3h8c8xva

In the first two articles in this series, I reviewed the evidence that exercise can influence cancer biology, progression and survival, and then examined what CHALLENGE, ECHO and INTERVAL-GAP4 actually tell us.
We now have something the field has pursued for years: a randomized controlled trial demonstrating that structured exercise can improve disease-free and overall survival.
CHALLENGE is a landmark result. But the clinical implication is not that every person with cancer should now be prescribed the CHALLENGE protocol, nor that a generic recommendation such as 150 minutes of moderate exercise is appropriate exercise medicine for every patient. Cancer, its treatments and the resulting physiological consequences are highly heterogeneous. A patient losing muscle rapidly during treatment requires a very different exercise prescription from someone developing cardiotoxicity, osteoporosis, metabolic dysfunction or neuropathy. We also cannot assume that an exercise dose effective in healthy populations will produce the same adaptation in patients exposed to cancer therapies.
The next phase of exercise oncology research therefore needs to move beyond simply asking whether exercise works. We need to determine which exercise mode, dose, timing and duration best treats the dominant physiological problems in each patient, while also investigating whether precisely prescribed exercise can enhance the effectiveness of radiotherapy, systemic therapy and immunotherapy.
At the same time, access to exercise oncology should be expanded now because the benefits for treatment side effects, physical function, fitness and quality of life are already well established.
In this article I explore what I believe the research field needs to do next.

#ExerciseOncology #ExerciseMedicine #CancerResearch #CancerCare #PrecisionMedicine

I had the great pleasure of being on Dr. Geo Espinosa's Podcast and you can listen to it here: dr-geo-prostate-podcast.captivate.fm/episode/can-ex…
@drgeoespinosa02

Pain is one of the most difficult symptoms experienced by people with cancer — but exercise medicine can be part of the analgesic strategy.
Correctly prescribed exercise activates endogenous pain-control systems, including endorphins, endocannabinoids, descending pain modulation, improved circulation, reduced inflammatory tone, and myokine release from skeletal muscle.
This is not simply about distraction or general wellbeing. It is a measurable biological response.
In my latest Substack article, I discuss how exercise-induced analgesia can be used clinically during and after cancer treatment, including how exercise of non-painful regions can reduce pain sensitivity and support rehabilitation of an affected site.
Read the article here: profrobnewton.substack.com/p/exercise-med…
My book, MyExerciseMedicine for Cancer, is available here: amazon.com/dp/1764297512/
#ExerciseOncology #ExerciseMedicine #CancerPain #CancerRehabilitation #CancerCare #PainManagement #ExerciseInducedAnalgesia #MyExerciseMedicine