By Einav Keet

From diagnosis to prognosis and treatment, women with breast cancer struggle every step of the way with fear, fatigue, depression, and pain. For the one in seven American women with the disease, yoga may offer welcome relief. A new study shows how practicing yoga may help the recovery process. University of Texas researchers followed 61 women while they went through six weeks of radiation, 30 of whom also attended yoga classes twice-weekly. When the six weeks had passed, each woman answered a series of questions on how she felt about her health. Whether it was the physical activity, the meditative aspect, or both, the women in the yoga group seemed to fare better overall, saying they felt healthier and stronger than the women who hadn’t been doing their Downward Dogs. While more tests to measure the women’s stress and immunity are still underway, it sounds like yoga’s won the first round—to the potential benefit of breast cancer patients everywhere.