Colorectal cancer and its treatment frequently result in reduced physical performance, alterations in body composition, and deterioration of patients' functional status, while the effects of exercise programmes delivered in the home setting remain insufficiently investigated. The aim of this master's thesis was to determine the extent to which an individualized home-based exercise programme influences the physical performance of patients with colorectal cancer, whether the change in phase angle between the first (T1 (BIA)) and third (T3 (BIA)) time point differs between the intervention and control groups, and whether changes in phase angle are associated with changes in selected indicators of physical performance. The study was designed as a prospective, randomized, controlled interventional trial conducted within the OREH project, an organized holistic rehabilitation programme for patients with colon and rectal cancer at the Institute of Oncology Ljubljana. The analysis included 130 patients, 66 in the intervention group and 64 in the control group. Patients in the intervention group performed an individually tailored programme of strength, balance and mobility exercises for approximately one year and received recommendations for regular walking. Physical performance was assessed using the 30-Second Chair Stand Test, the Handgrip Strength Test, the Isometric Knee Extension Test and the Six-Minute Walk Test, while phase angle was measured using bioelectrical impedance analysis. Changes were analysed using linear mixed-effects models and associations using Spearman's rank correlation analysis. Patients in the intervention group achieved a statistically significant improvement of 1.0 repetition in the 30-Second Chair Stand Test (p = 0.005 after Bonferroni correction), whereas the change in handgrip strength was not statistically significant. The between-group difference in phase angle change did not reach statistical significance, and no statistically significant associations were found between changes in phase angle and changes in isometric knee extension or the Six-Minute Walk Test. The intervention group improved lower-limb functional strength between the two assessments, although this outcome cannot be reliably attributed to the exercise intervention given the study design. Phase angle and physical performance tests reflect different aspects of a patient's health status and should therefore be interpreted together when monitoring patients with colorectal cancer. The results should be interpreted in light of the fact that the control group did not undergo physical performance testing, that body composition and physical performance measurements did not cover the same time period, that exercise intensity was not standardized, and that patients in the intervention group also received nutritional, psycho-oncological and vocational support.
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