Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer among women in Greece, with around 4,500 new cases each year. Thanks to advances in treatment, more women are surviving the disease, but many face persistent side effects: chronic fatigue, motor difficulties and psychological distress.
Despite the scientific evidence in favor of therapeutic exercise, structured rehabilitation programs are still rare. “Restoring strength and mind” was created to fill this void, proposing a holistic, safe and culturally adapted model to the needs of patients.
What the project involves
The project proposes an innovative physical and psychological rehabilitation path for women between 45 and 60 years old who have completed treatment for breast cancer for 3 to 6 months.
The program includes music-driven group exercise sessions, targeted physiotherapy, psychoeducation, and counseling, with the goal of reducing cancer-related fatigue, improving mood, and strengthening autonomy.
The initiative also includes the creation of an operational manual for physiotherapists, the collection of pilot clinical data and a toolkit to aid the replicability of the model in other healthcare settings.
The beneficiaries
Direct recipients are 60–80 women between 45 and 60 years old, breast cancer survivors, who will participate in supervised therapeutic exercise and psychological support sessions.
Indirect beneficiaries are families, caregivers, health professionals involved and the health system, which will acquire an innovative, sustainable and easily scalable model to improve the quality of life of cancer patients.
Project name: Restoring Strength and Mind: A Physiotherapy-Based Model for Breast Cancer Survivors - RyKaTHeA
Proposing organisation: Hellenic Cancer Society
Area of intervention: Health & Welfare
Country: Greece