Routine exercise could potentially reduce the risk of post-menopausal women developing breast cancer, according to research published in the American Association for Cancer Research journal.

Led by Agnès Fournier, PhD and researcher in the Center for Research in Epidemiology and Population Health at the Institute Gustave Roussy in Villejuif, France, the study measured women’s physical statuses based on metabolic equivalent task-hours (MET-h) undertaken each week.

Data was collected using biennial questionnaires completed by 59,308 post-menopausal women, who were also part of a scheme called E3N – the French section of the European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) Study.

During the follow-up period of the investigation, which lasted around eight and a half years, 2,155 of the women were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer.

Researchers found that the diagnosis rate was about 10 per cent lower among those who carried out regular exercise routines over the past four years of the follow-up.

Physical actively has long been mooted as a potential problem solver for a number of health issues, with growing amounts of research linking exercise with an impact on preventing the development of certain cancers.

Exercise has also been suggested as a way to manage cancer among thos already diagnosed, with one piece of research stating that women with breast cancer should be getting more exercise to reinforce overall wellbeing.