Introduction:

cancer and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are among the main causes of mortality worldwide. In CVD patients, continuous moderate-intensity training and High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) are safe, effective, and may be a strategy to improve cardiovascular health.

Material and methods:

a prospective experimental study was performed with a sample of 275 cancer survivors recently diagnosed with CVD and low functional capacity, less than 4 METs (metabolic equivalent of task). A training program lasting 36 weeks was applied with assistance three times a week of 70 minutes per intervention and with pre and post-measurements of anthropometry by bioimpedance, New York Heart Association (NYHA) Scale, stress test, echocardiogram, sarcopenia (Anthropometry, muscular strength, and functionality), lipid profile, quality of life European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTG-C30), questionnaire for fatigue (FACT-Fatigue scale), 6 minutes walk test for distance traveled and estimated VO2.

Results:

significant improvement was reported in ejection fraction (40 ± 4.8 vs 47 ± 5.6; p ≤ 0.05), functional capacity reported in METs (2.1 ± 1.6 vs 3.9 ± 0.9), quality of life (108 ± 14 vs 121 ±7.6; p = 0.002) and improvement in estimated VO2max, strength, muscle percentage, and post-intervention blood pressure (p ≤ 0.05). In addition, the lipid profile, glucose, abdominal circumference, fat percentage (p ≤ 0.05), and sarcopenia (32 vs 13%; p = 0.012) decreased after HIIT training without any adverse events during the interventions in the study population.

Conclusions:

the use of HIIT training is an efficient and safe way to improve physical capacity, quality of life, anthropometric parameters, and control cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) in cancer survivors with a recent diagnosis of CVD.

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