Steven Moore

Ph.D., M.P.H.

National Cancer Institute

Senior Investigator

PLCO (Learn more about this study)

PLCO-1483

Feb 26, 2024

Types of Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior and Risk of Cancer and Mortality: Pooled Analyses in the NCI Cohort Consortium

In the past decade, researchers have established the dose-response relationship between physical activity and mortality and shown that physical activity is associated with lower risk of many cancers. With these key issues resolved, there has been growing interest in how physical activity type relates to health, meaning the contribution of specific activities such as running, swimming, and strength training, etc. to health outcomes. Ample research shows that different activities elicit different physiologic adaptations and thus could have different relationships with key outcomes. The epidemiologic data on physical activity type and cancer risk are particularly sparse. Moreover, physical activity studies to date have often lacked diversity, especially with respect to race and/or ethnicity.

Without better data on physical activity type, researchers cannot draw firm conclusions about the activities most likely to lower risk of cancer and death. This makes it difficult for public health practitioners to optimize physical activity recommendations. And without data on more diverse populations, the generalizability of many physical activity findings cannot be verified.

To help resolve the role of physical activity type in risk of cancer and mortality, we propose a large-scale consortium-based project with six planned papers that will investigate associations of distinct types of physical activity in relation to risk of cancer and mortality. The project titles are: 1) Aerobic modes of physical activity and cancer risk; 2) Muscle-strengthening activities and cancer risk; 3) Daily stair climbing and cancer risk; 4) Sedentary behavior and cancer risk; 5) Physical activity types and cause-specific mortality; 6) Leisure-time physical activity and cancer risk by race and ethnicity. To pursue these aims we will approach prospective cohorts that are part of the National Cancer Institute Cohort Consortium that have collected detailed physical activity and sedentary time assessments from their participants. If most cohorts choose to participate, then the sample size for this project could be as high as (or even higher than) 2 million participants, with some variation across the planned papers related to the availability of the required physical activity variables. Furthermore, we anticipate far more non-White participants in this project as compared with previous consortium efforts (for example, we expect up to 193,000 Black or African American participants, which would equal up to 6X the number of Black participants in our prior consortium efforts).

A full proposal and variable list are available and can be provided in follow up correspondence.