Whether you’ve had cancer, got it, or you’re trying to avoid it, walking has proven time and again it’s one of this wicked disease’s greatest foes.
Cancer has already touched your life. If you haven’t had it, you’ll certainly know someone who has. One in two of us get it at some stage in our lives, and in the UK 450 people die of the disease every day.
A diagnosis can lead to months, sometimes years, of treatment, fear and uncertainty, and it can strike you at any age. But by looking through this magazine you’re reading page after page of the best preventative medicine we humans have at our disposal.
“Walking is fantastic for prevention,” says professor Scarlett McNally, the lead author for the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges report Exercise: The Miracle Cure. “The statistics are very clear – being active is the primary prevention for cancer. It reduces the risk of cancer across the board by 25-30%. In bowel cancer it reduces the risk by 45%.”
And it’s not only cancer prevention where walking weaves its magic. If you’ve been diagnosed with the disease and need an operation, then getting yourself walking will reduce your risk of complications during that operation by about 50%. “The results are really good. It’ll lower your risk of going into ICU, it’ll lower your risk of chest infection – it’ll even help with things like having strong enough legs to go to the toilet yourself. Walking’s also very good for managing pain. It releases endorphins, which are your body’s natural heroin, so you need fewer pain killers.”
For people living with cancer, Scarlett says regular walks will help in multiple ways:
“‘It helps with side effects, reduces fatigue, boosts muscle bulk, immune function and metabolism, and gives you the empowering effect of achievement.‘
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“Walking is a great thing to do for physical and mental health – it helps you cope with the side effects and it improves fatigue, your muscle bulk, it has an effect on the immune function and your metabolism, and it gives you the empowering effect of achieving something.”
The whole topic is close to Scarlett’s heart. She herself has a cancer called myeloma and was gravely ill two years ago, but is now doing well. Scarlett knew that getting fit would help, so that’s exactly what she did. “I wouldn’t be alive myself if it wasn’t for exercise. We’ve got to change the mindset so people realise walking is part of the treatment.”
Cancer in numbers
1000
New cancer cases each day in the UK
450
The number of people who die of cancer daily in the UK
50%
Half of us will be diagnosed with cancer during our lifetime
13
The number of cancers you lower the risk of getting by keeping a healthy weight
20-25%
The amount regular walking will reduce your risk of all cancers
40-50%
The amount regular walking will reduce your risk of colon cancer
30-40%
The amount regular walking will reduce women’s risk of breast cancer
CASE STUDIES
’The doctors told me walking was the best thing I could be doing’
‘I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 and had two lots of surgery plus six lots of chemotherapy. Sometimes I was in so much pain it took me 15 minutes to walk downstairs. But the doctors told me walking was the best thing I could be doing, and being outside in the fresh air felt so good after days of being shut in. I firmly believe regular walking helped my recovery. It’s such an important part of my life and helps both my physical and mental health. I now know how far I can walk before I’ll need a rest – I’ve learned to listen to my body and make adjustments. But as we’re now retired we walk every day – being in the fresh air and surrounded by nature is so good.’
Sue Sanders, 61, Warwickshire
’I had no idea how important the 1000-mile goal would become’
‘I was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer at 32 due to a genetic mutation I carry called Lynch Syndrome. Facing my own mortality at a young age hit me hard. I gained weight, my fitness declined and my self-confidence took a battering. But gradually I used walking to build back my fitness, boost my mental health and clear my mind, and at the end of my chemo my scan showed no evidence of disease. I cried. It was a place I never thought I’d get to. When I committed to #walk1000miles last year, I had no idea how important that goal would become to me. Just a month into the challenge I faced a new diagnosis – womb cancer, which meant another major surgery. But the challenge helped motivate me to get out when I was feeling low, and I even ended up doing my Lowland Leader qualification. Walking and the outdoors have been so important in helping me heal from the trauma.’
Cara Hoofe, 38, Huddersfield
’Walking helps me clear my mind’
‘After I was diagnosed with breast cancer the shock took a toll on my mental health. My three sons may have been adults, but I was still their shoulder to cry on and it was hard for them to see me crumble. #walk1000miles has given me another goal, another focus. It’s helped me put everything that has gone before into perspective. It happened to me. I had cancer. But I got through it. Regular walking helps me clear my mind. I can think. I can breathe.’
Sona Prendergast, 62, Somerset
