Effects of Exergaming in Cancer Related Fatigue in the Quality of Life and Electromyography of the Middle Deltoid of People with Cancer in Treatment: A Controlled Trial

Objective: In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the effects an exergaming protocol for cancer patients who undergo or have already undergone cancer treatment. We sought to evaluate changes in cancer-related fatigue, function, and ability to perform daily activities, in addition to changes in the electromyographic pattern of the middle deltoid muscle. Methods: We conducted a controlled trial. Nineteen volunteers in the cancer group (aged 61 ± 9 years; body mass index28 ± 5) and 19 in the control group (aged 58 ± 8 years); body mass index 28 ± 4) participated in the study. They were evaluated by means of a sociodemographic and clinical questionnaire, the Functional Assessment of Chronic Therapy-Fatigue (FACIT-F) questionnaire, and surface electromyography in the deltoid muscle at three moments: before the beginning of the exergaming protocol, after 10 training sessions, and after 20 sessions. The protocol consisted of practicing exergaming using Xbox 360® (Microsoft, Redmond, USA) with Kinect®. The game “Your Shape Fitness Evolved” (Ubisoft, Rennes, France) was used. Results: Total FACIT-F scores, fatigue subscale scores, and median frequency values observed in the cancer group were lower than those in the control group. These values improved in relation to the initial evaluation in the cancer group after the practice of the exergaming protocol. Conclusion: The exergaming protocol used in this study was effective for reducing reported symptoms of fatigue, increasing perceived quality of life, and improving the pattern of deltoid muscle contraction in cancer patients.