Pre-Surgery Activity Frequency Linked to Halved Delirium Risk in Cancer Patients

The analysis drew from 2024-2025 records at Moffitt Cancer Center, using Confusion Assessment Method screening to identify 64 delirium cases matched to 194 controls. Self-reported weekly activity counts and sitting time were compared; delirium patients averaged fewer activity bouts and more sedentary hours. The 50% risk reduction held after matching but relied entirely on retrospective recall without objective accelerometry or dose-response gradients.

This conference abstract aligns with broader prehabilitation literature, including a 2023 JAMA Surgery meta-analysis of 12 RCTs showing exercise-nutrition bundles reduced delirium by 35% in older surgical cohorts. Yet the present data cannot separate activity from unmeasured fitness, comorbidity, or socioeconomic factors that influence both exercise habits and brain resilience. No adjustment for anesthesia type or intraoperative hypotension was described.

Next steps require a prospective RCT randomizing patients to structured prehab versus usual care, powered for delirium incidence with blinded assessment and biomarker endpoints such as inflammatory cytokines. Until then, the association supports counseling but does not establish causality.