The aim was to assess the level of physical activity and the quality of life of children undergoing cancer treatment, during and after the completion of the treatment. Eighty-eight children aged 11–15 were enrolled. Three groups of children were assessed, i.e., children undergoing cancer treatment (n = 30), children after cancer treatment (n = 28), and healthy children (n = 30). The level of physical activity in children was assessed using the questions from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) questionnaire. The assessment of children’s quality of life was conducted using the KIDSCREEN-10 Index. The chi-square test was used to assess the statistical significance of the differences in the results between the study groups in the case of both HBSC and KIDSCREEN-10 questionnaires. Children undergoing cancer treatment did not perform any physical activity of at least 60 min (in total) per day, during the week. Therefore, they did not meet the recommendations related to the appropriate level of daily physical activity (Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity; MVPA). Children after cancer treatment and healthy children significantly more frequently undertook physical activity. The quality of life of children with cancer is significantly lower and different from the quality of life of healthy children.

Despite the beneficial effect of exercise, children treated for cancer do not engage in sufficient physical activity. It is necessary to search for attractive forms of physical activity, including interactive video games (IVGs). The aim of this study was to verify the effectiveness of the rehabilitation model developed by the authors based on the use of IVGs in children undergoing leukemia treatment. The study included a group of 21 children aged 7–13 years (12 boys, 9 girls) undergoing treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (n = 13) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) (n = 8). The children were randomly assigned to an intervention group and a control group. To assess the level of cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), each child participated in a Cardiopulmonary Exercise Test. Daily physical activity was assessed using the HBSC questionnaire. The study also used the Children’s Effort Rating Table Scale (CERT) to assess the intensity of physical effort. The children in the intervention group participated in 12 sessions of. The study participants managed to complete all stages of a progressive training program, which confirmed the feasibility of such physical effort by patients with cancer. Pediatric patients reported that the IVG training required a light to moderate physical effort despite high values of energy expenditure (EE).

The aim of the study was to assess the exercise capacity (VO_2peak) of children undergoing leukemia treatment and to compare the results with healthy children. Furthermore, we assessed the influence of treatment methods on the level of exercise capacity and the increase in sedentary behaviors. The study comprised 21 children (12 boys and 9 girls) undergoing treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) (n = 13) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) (n = 8). The subjects were aged 7–13 years (mean age 10.7, SD 2.0 years). Cardiorespiratory fitness was assessed by using the ergospirometry test. Progressive Godfrey protocol was performed. The level of physical activity was assessed by using the questions from the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC 2018) questionnaire. The study results showed that children undergoing leukemia treatment were characterized by a reduced level of exercise capacity. The measured value of VO_2peak in the group of treated children was, on average, 22.16 mL·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹. The mean values of VO_2peak predicted for this age group were 45.48 mL·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹ (SD, 3.8). The measured value of VO_2peak in the study group with the division into age groups was, on average, 21.21 mL·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹ in the group of children aged 7–10 years. In the group of children aged 11–13 years, this parameter was 22.64 mL·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹. Lack of physical activity and failure to meet the standards for the minimum level of weekly physical activity (MVPA index—moderate-to-vigorous physical activity) probably contribute to the deterioration in exercise capacity level of cancer-treated children.

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of virtual reality (VR) in the mental state and quality of sleep improvement and physical activity (PA) increase of patients diagnosed with breast cancer (BC). A total of 33 subjects divided into experimental (EG, n = 17) and control (CG, n = 16) groups were assessed with the Mental Adjustment to Cancer Scale (Mini-MAC), International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Modified Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS-M) at four time points. The experimental intervention consisted of eight VR TierOne sessions. Significant differences favoring the EG were identified in the group x time interactions for the main outcomes: destructive style of coping with the disease (p < 0.001), walking (p = 0.04), moderate (p < 0.001) and overall activity (p = 0.004), quality of sleep (p < 0.001), depressive symptoms (p < 0.001), anxiety levels (p < 0.001), aggression levels (p = 0.002), and overall HADS (p < 0.001). Trends, favoring the EG, in the constructive style of coping, sedentary behavior and intensive PA, and sleep efficiency and sleeping time were also found. A VR intervention improves general well-being in terms of the measured parameters.

The aim of the study was to assess daily physical activity level and its influence on the physical efficiency of children after the treatment of leukemia. The study was comprised of 34 children (23 boys and 11 girls) after the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia or myeloid leukemia (mean age of 11.29 ± 2.81 years, mean body height of 146.88 ± 16.11 cm, and mean body weight of 43.68 ± 13.93 kg). The mean time since treatment completion was 3.09 ± 1.80 years. The level of physical activity was assessed with the Health Behavior in School-Aged Children questionnaire (HBSC). Physical efficiency was assessed based on the palant ball throw (assessment of strength, coordination, and upper limb speed), the long jump (assessment of jumping ability, speed and coordination) and the 60 m run (assessment of speed). Measurements of motor skills were normalized, classified according to age and sex, and converted into grades. The mean values obtained in the run and the ball throw showed low pass grades in the study group. In the case of the long jump, satisfactory grades were obtained. A correlation of r = 0.512 was found between vigorous physical activity (HBSC 3) and the grade in the run. A correlation of r = −0.437 was observed between the duration of computer use in leisure time (HBSC 6) and the grade in the long jump, whereas correlations of r = −0.482 and −0.485 were noted between the number hours per week spent on games (HBSC 5) and the duration of computer use in leisure time (HBSC 6) and the grade obtained in the ball throw, respectively. In addition, different levels of physical activity and physical efficiency were demonstrated depending on the time elapsed since treatment completion. Supervised programs promoting daily physical activity should include children after the treatment of leukemia. These programs should also be aimed at improving their physical efficiency.

Introduction: Childhood cancer treatment is aggressive and may lead to a significant limitation of physical activity as well as deterioration of children’s quality of life. Anticancer treatment, though it saves health and life, also leads to problems resulting from the lack of sufficient physical activity. The aim of the study was to assess the level of the physical activity and quality of life in children undergoing leukaemia treatment and examine if there was a correlation between these two.Methods: Anonymous surveys were conducted. The quality of children’s lives was assessed with the KIDSCREEN-10 questionnaire. The level of physical activity was determined with the use of questions from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) questionnaire.Results: A study group of 30 children undergoing stationary leukaemia treatment and a control group of 30 healthy children were examined. None of the treated children made a physical effort lasting at least 60 minutes a day; 77% of them did not perform any intense physical effort. All the children undergoing leukaemia treatment showed malaise and low quality of life. No correlation was observed between the level of physical activity and life quality among the oncologically treated children.Conclusions: Children treated for leukaemia had a low level of physical activity and life quality. They did not undertake any form of physical activity contributing to the improvement of parameters of exercise capacity. There was no correlation between the level of physical activity and life quality in children treated for leukaemia.