Physical inactivity appeared linked with an increased risk for lung cancer, according to findings published in Cancer Treatment and Research Communications.

“[Although] a recently published meta-analysis of epidemiological evidence reported an inverse association between the highest level of recreational physical activity exposure and lung cancer risk, data representing the associations between physical activity and lung cancer endpoints among women, nonsmokers and among the individual subtypes of lung cancer are limited,” Rikki Cannioto, PhD, EdD, MS, population scientist and cancer epidemiologist at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, and colleagues wrote.

“Importantly, physical activity exposure is not currently recognized by the National Cancer Institute or the American Cancer Society as a well-established protective or prognostic factor for lung cancer, and little is known about the independent association of physical inactivity with lung cancer risk and diagnosis.”