The Study
Skeletal muscle mass, strength, and physical performance gains are similar between healthy postmenopausal women and postmenopausal breast cancer survivors after 12 weeks of resistance exercise training
This study watched two groups of women — some healthy, some who had breast cancer — do strength training for 12 weeks. It found both groups got stronger and improved in similar ways. But because the women weren’t randomly assigned to groups, we can’t say for sure that the training caused the changes — only that they happened during the program.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
This study looked at whether lifting weights helps women after menopause build muscle and get stronger, especially those who survived breast cancer.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 543 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes, these gains are meaningful—they mean easier movement, better balance, and improved daily function for older women, regardless of cancer history.
- 2After 12 weeks of weight training, both healthy women and breast cancer survivors gained 5–8% more leg muscle, got 25–43% stronger, and moved faster.
- 3Everyone improved about the same.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Supportive Care in Cancer
Year
2024
Authors
Macarena Artigas-Arias, Andrea Alegría-Molina, Nicolás Vidal-Seguel, Rodrigo Muñoz-Cofré, Juan Carranza-Leiva, Alexis Sepúlveda-Lara, K. Vitzel, Nolberto Huard, Jorge Sapunar, Luis A Salazar, R. Curi, Gabriel Marzuca-Nassr
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Claims (5)
Everyone can build muscle with consistent strength training over time — if you didn’t gain muscle once, it’s probably not your genes, just that specific training phase didn’t work for you.
If postmenopausal women do strength training three times a week for three months, their thigh muscles get about 5 to 8% thicker — whether or not they’ve had breast cancer.
Doing strength training for 12 weeks may help postmenopausal women — both healthy ones and breast cancer survivors — move better, walk farther, and get up and go faster.
Doing strength training three times a week for three months helps both healthy postmenopausal women and breast cancer survivors gain muscle and get stronger — and both groups benefit about the same.
Doing strength training for 12 weeks can boost muscle strength by about a quarter to nearly half in women after menopause — whether they're healthy or have survived breast cancer.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.