Prehabilitation for colon cancer surgery: a systematic review of quality-of-life outcomes and a feasibility study.
4 affiliations
- 1Department of Abdominal Surgery, Regional Hospital Randers, Randers, Denmark. [email protected].
- 2Health Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 120, Building 1521, 1st floor, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark. [email protected].
- 3Department of Abdominal Surgery, Regional Hospital Randers, Randers, Denmark.
- 4University Clinic for Coloproctology and Endoscopy, Regional Hospital Randers, Randers, Denmark.
Abstract
Purpose
To evaluate the feasibility of short-term prehabilitation and its impact on quality of life in patients with colorectal cancer through a systematic review and a feasibility study.Methods
The systematic review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, PubPsych, CINAHL, EMBASE, Web of Science and EBSCOhost were searched for studies evaluating quality of life in colorectal cancer patients undergoing prehabilitation. We conducted a prospective non-randomised interventional feasibility study, with a 2-week post-surgery follow-up, enrolling patients diagnosed with colon cancer.Results
The systematic review included six studies from 517 unique records for final analysis. Among six studies, evidence for quality-of-life benefits of prehabilitation was conflicting but predominantly favourable, with generally low-to-moderate study quality and substantial heterogeneity. In the feasibility study, 110 patients were eligible for inclusion; 70 (64%) were included, and 63 completed the entire study. Of the 32 patients in the intervention group, compliance > 80% was observed in 66% (nutrition) and 88% (physical activity) of patients, with a median compliance of 100% for both. Quality-of-life outcomes were explored as secondary measures and showed potential favourable trends following prehabilitation.Conclusion
Evidence on the effect of prehabilitation on quality of life in colorectal cancer remains inconsistent; our feasibility study shows that short-term multimodal prehabilitation is feasible and supports the need for adequately powered trials.
Related
- Prehabilitation and postoperative outcomes in gastric cancer surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Effects of enhanced recovery after surgery and prehabilitation interventions on postoperative outcomes after lung resection in patients with lung cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
- Feasibility and safety of an exercise-based prehabilitation intervention before cancer surgery: a pilot randomised controlled trial.
- Minithoracotomy approach for redo mitral valve surgery: Feasibility, operative outcomes, and comparative analysis of myocardial protection techniques
- Prehabilitation and Early Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) in head and neck cancers: a protocol for a prospective, stratified, open-label randomised controlled trial in adults (PreERA)
BibTeX
@article{stadelhofer2026prehabilitation,
title = {{Prehabilitation for colon cancer surgery: a systematic review of quality-of-life outcomes and a feasibility study.}},
author = {Michelle V Stadelhofer and Helene R Dalby and Anne Thyø and Katrine J Emmertsen},
journal = {International journal of colorectal disease},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1007/s00384-026-05203-w},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42901989},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Prehabilitation for colon cancer surgery: a systematic review of quality-of-life outcomes and a feasibility study.
AU - Michelle V Stadelhofer
AU - Helene R Dalby
AU - Anne Thyø
AU - Katrine J Emmertsen
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/25
JO - International journal of colorectal disease
DO - 10.1007/s00384-026-05203-w
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42901989
AB - Purpose To evaluate the feasibility of short-term prehabilitation and its impact on quality of life in patients with colorectal cancer through a systematic review and a feasibility study.Methods The systematic review was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. PubMed, PubPsych, CINAHL, EMBASE, Web of Science and EBSCOhost were searched for studies evaluating quality of life in colorectal cancer patients undergoing prehabilitation. We conducted a prospective non-randomised interventional feasibility study, with a 2-week post-surgery follow-up, enrolling patients diagnosed with colon cancer.Results The systematic review included six studies from 517 unique records for final analysis. Among six studies, evidence for quality-of-life benefits of prehabilitation was conflicting but predominantly favourable, with generally low-to-moderate study quality and substantial heterogeneity. In the feasibility study, 110 patients were eligible for inclusion; 70 (64%) were included, and 63 completed the entire study. Of the 32 patients in the intervention group, compliance > 80% was observed in 66% (nutrition) and 88% (physical activity) of patients, with a median compliance of 100% for both. Quality-of-life outcomes were explored as secondary measures and showed potential favourable trends following prehabilitation.Conclusion Evidence on the effect of prehabilitation on quality of life in colorectal cancer remains inconsistent; our feasibility study shows that short-term multimodal prehabilitation is feasible and supports the need for adequately powered trials.
SN - 0179-1958
SN - 1432-1262
ER -