Alice Avancini, Researcher in Exercise Oncology and Adjunct Professor at the Verona University, shared on LinkedIn:
“What if we could transform the future of Exercise in Lung Cancer Care worldwide?
Not only by making exercise accessible to everyone living with lung cancer, regardless of where they live or their stage of disease, but also by advancing research, addressing critical knowledge gaps, fostering international collaboration, and translating scientific evidence into clinical practice.
We have growing evidence, we have important questions still to answer, and we have a shared vision: moving exercise oncology research and clinical practice forward, together! And this is exactly the vision behind IREX-Lung, International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer!
IREX-Lung is now officially a subcommittee of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), co-chaired by Sara Pilotto and Morten Quist, with Jordan Curry serving as Deputy Chair!
An international, multidisciplinary network bringing together researchers, oncologists, rehabilitation , exercise professionals, and patient advocates, united by one shared ambition: advancing the science and implementation of exercise in lung cancer care worldwide!
Our vision, research priorities, and future directions are now outlined in our newly published commentary published in JTO Clinical and Research Reports, but that can be summarized as:
- Advance Research – Address critical evidence gaps, explore the role of exercise across different disease stages and treatment pathways, and promote high-quality collaborative studies.
- Move towards precision exercise – Develop more personalized, lung cancer-specific exercise recommendations that consider disease, treatment, and individual patient characteristics.
- Strengthen international collaboration – Connect researchers, healthcare professionals, and institutions worldwide to harmonize research efforts and accelerate scientific progress.
- Build knowledge & expertise – Develop international consensus recommendations, educational resources, and training opportunities for healthcare and exercise professionals.
- Bridge the gap between research and clinical practice – Overcome implementation barriers and develop sustainable, scalable, and equitable exercise programs.
A huge thank you to all the co-authors for their enthusiasm, dedication, and commitment to this shared vision. Because advancing exercise oncology is not just about generating more evidence. It’s about connecting people, sharing knowledge, challenging current practices, and creating real opportunities to improve lung cancer care.”
Title: Toward Global Integration of Exercise in Lung Cancer Care: The IREX-Lung Initiative.
Authors: Jordan Curry, Alice Avancini, Thomas Budolfsen, Ana Cardeña-Gutiérrez, Vinicius Cavalheri, David Collado Martínez, Narjust Florez, Cecilia Pompili, Vanesa Rodríguez Sales, Raquel Sebio-Garcia, Teresa-Soria Comes, Morten Quist, Sara Pilotto.
You can also read: Exercise in Lung Cancer Care: From Supportive Evidence to Global Implementation With IREX-Lung.
