Acute Effects of Exercise on the Cortical Silent Period in Prostate Cancer Patients

In Canadian men, prostate cancer (PCa) is the most prevalent form of cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related death. Unfortunately, PCa survivors are often burdened with feelings of anxiety and depression associated with the disease and associated treatments. Short-term exercise interventions (8-24 weeks) have improved psychosocial well-being in this population, but the impact of single bouts of exercise and related psychological or neurological changes have never been studied. The primary objective of the proposed study is to examine the effect of an acute bout of exercise on neurophysiological and psychological indicators of well-being in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of 36 men with PCa. Participants will be randomly assigned to the intervention (60 min exercise) or control (60 min of television) and will undergo a brief neurological test (cortical silent period) and psychological questionnaires before and after their group assignment.