The battle doesn't end after making it through the rough road of prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment. Survivors don't usually come out unscathed as the treatment itself can take its toll on their health.

Most of the prostate cancer survivors, if not all, may find themselves looking for the best way to stay fit and reduce the damaging side effects of their treatment.

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A new study recently published in the Journal of Cancer Survivorship: Research and Practice states that walking at an easy pace for simply three hours each week is enough physical activity to help prostate cancer survivors maximize their long-term health.

The study just shows that survivors don't have to engage in high-impact, vigorous activities to improve quality of life after a prostate cancer diagnosis, said lead author Siobhan Phillips, a kinesiologist and professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Phillips added that non-vigorous walking for three hours per week could improve the depression, fatigue and body weight issues that affect many men post-treatment while walking even more briskly, for about 90 minutes a week, could also have similar benefits.

Finding out which types of exercises were proved most helpful to prostate cancer survivors, Phillips and his team managed to find the relationship between simple walking and enhance health results.

The information was taken from a massive research conducted by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study surveyed 51, 529 men from the health care industry and included data about their exercise routines, diets, smoking habits, doctor visits and more.

The male participants also filled out questionnaires, which counted in details on their sexual functions issues, depression, body weight, urinary and bowel problems, fatigue and erectile dysfunction.

In addition, the participants charted activities such as jogging, running, swimming, climbing and playing sports. The men also tallied the amount of time they spent on walking each week and whether their walking pace was easy, average, brisk and very brisk.

As part of the latest study, the team at Northwestern obtained information on the participants who survived the non-advance stage of prostate cancer.

When checking for more vigorous exercise and disruptive health factors, the researchers found out that the survivors were more likely to have an improved health if they walked at an easy pace for at least three hours each week.

The researchers encourage survivors to start a simple strolling habit as soon as possible after a prostate cancer medical treatment.

Tagsprostate cancer, Cancer Survivors