April 21, 2026European Heart Journal16 citationsOpen Access
View Full PaperCardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise: evidence, priorities, and research standards from the ICOS-CORE working group
Key Result
Cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise (CORE) is a potentially scalable model to improve cardiovascular health in cancer survivors, though current evidence of its efficacy remains limited.
Key Points
- This whitepaper aims to assess and improve the evidence for cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise programs for cancer survivors.
- Review of current literature on cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise programs.
- Identification of challenges and priorities for future research in this domain.
- Recommendations for research standards to ensure robust evidence.
- Highlights the potential of CORE programs to improve cardiovascular health in cancer survivors.
- Identifies existing gaps in evidence regarding the efficacy of cardio-oncology rehabilitation.
- Calls for a multidisciplinary approach to establish stronger standards and frameworks for research.
Structured PICO
P
Population
Cancer survivors
I
Intervention
Cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise (CORE) programmes
This whitepaper provides a roadmap and research standards to improve the evidence base for cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise programs.
Limitations
- Limited evidence of the efficacy of this approach in patients with cancer
Abstract
The aim of this whitepaper is to review the current state of the literature on the effects of cardio-oncology rehabilitation and exercise (CORE) programmes and provide a roadmap for improving the evidence-based to support the implementation of CORE. There is an urgent need to reinforce and extend the evidence informing the cardiovascular care of cancer survivors. CORE is an attractive model that is potentially scalable to improve the cardiovascular health of cancer survivors as it leverages many of the existing frameworks developed through decades of delivery of cardiac rehabilitation. However, there are several challenges within this burgeoning field, including limited evidence of the efficacy of this approach in patients with cancer. In this paper, a multidisciplinary team of international experts highlights priorities for future research in this field and recommends standards for the conduct of research.