BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research recommends following the recommendations for cancer prevention even after cancer diagnosis. To provide evidence on the potential benefits of adherence on improved survival, we investigated the effects of post-diagnostic adherence to the recommendations regarding diet, physical activity, and body weight on all-cause mortality among Korean cancer survivors.

METHODS

Among the total number of cancer survivors ( = 173,195) recruited from 2004 to 2013 for the Health Examinees study, 5485 were selected for the analyses and classified by tertiles according to the adherence score. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the adjusted hazard ratios (HR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI) of the adherence groups on all-cause mortality.

RESULTS

Although no clear association was observed overall during a mean follow-up of 10.1 (standard deviation = 3.0) years, reduced mortality was observed for the middle (HR = 0.74 [95% CI = 0.51-1.08]) and highest adherent group (0.66 [0.43-0.99]) in comparison to the lowest adherent group among long-term survivors (>5 years after cancer diagnosis).

CONCLUSIONS

Among the cancer prevention recommendation items, "be physically active" and "limit consumption of fast foods" were inversely associated with mortality. Adhering to the WCRF/AICR cancer prevention recommendations may help improve the prognosis of long-term cancer survivors.