Objective Assessment

Objective, health-related fitness assessments may be useful for measuring baseline status and monitoring progress. However, to remove barriers to participating in physical activity, no assessment is required to start a low intensity aerobic program (e.g. walk or cycling), resistance training with gradual progression or flexibility training in for most cancer survivors.

Monitoring physiological status such as blood pressure, SpO2 and heart rate are encouraged in a formal rehabilitation program.

There is no core outcome measure set for general cancer rehabilitation programs. However, in lung cancer rehabilitation, two core measures are recommended:

• 6-minute walk test
• EORTC QLQ C30 (quality of life)

Your objective assessment should include assessments of muscle strength and aerobic capacity. A sarcopenia screen is also recommended by the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia. Older cancer survivors or those who have been treated with neurotoxic chemotherapy may benefit from a falls and balance assessment.

Further assessment procedures to set your exercise prescription can be found in Cancer Council’s Cancer Wellness and Exercise Toolkit

In our PhysioCaRe program, we recommend the following measures to comprise your exercise and physical assessment:

Source: Adapted from APTA Edge Taskforce