ALPHA females: embrace the gym, keep breast cancer at bay.

This article examines the ALPHA Trial, a program designed to increase health and fitness for older women at risk of cancer. The retired Edmonton schoolteacher caught a recruitment ad on TV for a study on how exercise helps prevent breast cancer. As part of the so-called ALPHA Trial, being run by the University of Alberta in Edmonton and the University of Calgary, Logvynenko now exercises five times a week, 45 minutes per session, often with a trainer provided by the research team. Research has suggested exercise reduces the risk of breast cancer in older women by 40 to 50 per cent. A key factor is estrogen, which post-menopausal women produce in fat cells rather than the ovaries. As high estrogen levels can trigger breast cancer, reducing fat may help ward off the disease. Kerry Courneya, a principal investigator with the ALPHA Trial, says research is focusing on post-menopausal females because they are 20 times more likely than younger women to develop breast cancer.