High-intensity exercise after breast cancer surgery may help speed recovery

After breast cancer surgery, many women are told to limit how much—and how soon—they exercise.

“Traditional guidelines question how soon women treated for breast cancer can exercise and how much weight they can safely lift, particularly in mastectomy and axillary lymph node dissection patients who have had extensive surgery,” said Dr. Colin Champ, an associate professor at Allegheny Health Network in Wexford, Pennsylvania, and a certified strength and conditioning specialist.

But new research presented Friday in Seattle at a meeting of the American Society of Breast Surgeons suggests that guidance may be overly cautious.

In this study, nearly 200 recent breast cancer survivors completed a three-month, high-intensity resistance training program. All had undergone lumpectomy, mastectomy or lymph node removal.

The result: Participants improved strength, mobility, balance and muscle mass, supporting a faster return to everyday activities.

And this wasn’t light training.

Within weeks, many participants were lifting 100 pounds. By the end, some reached 200.

Improvements were consistent across all surgery types, even among those who had more extensive procedures.

“We believe that the benefits of high-level exercise and resistance training and the ability of breast cancer survivors to perform well should not be underestimated,” Champ said.

He added that researchers strongly believe that “exercise should be not only a component of survivorship, but part of the standard of care.”

Research presented at meetings is considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

© 2026 HealthDay. All rights reserved.