Around 1 in 3 women more fatigued after breast cancer treatment

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-08-19 01:00

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Close to one in three women who were treated for breast cancer end up feeling more fatigued for at least two years after their treatment, say US researchers who followed up with 381 patients. The chemotherapy is known to be potentially harmful to the heart, so the team looked into the energy levels of these women before and after treatment. They found that 34.6% of them experienced increased fatigue, and this was independent of risk to their heart and circulatory system. The authors note that depressive symptoms and stress were strongly linked to their fatigue, and could explain why some women were experiencing the condition more than others.

News release

From: JAMA

Long-Term Fatigue After Treatment for Breast Cancer

In this cohort study of patients with BC, clinically relevant fatigue increased in 34% of patients 2 years after initiating cancer treatment mediated partly by depressive symptoms and perceived stress regardless of cardiovascular risk factors, age, or change in left ventricular ejection fraction and/or strain.

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Journal/
conference: JAMA Network Open

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Wake Forest University School of Medicine, USA

Funder: This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute: R01CA199167, theWake Forest National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) Research Base (UG1CA189824), and the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group-American College of Radiology Imaging Network NCORP Research Base (UG1CA189828).

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