By Lynne Adkins

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – A local researcher has discovered a good reason for telling certain cancer patients to take walk.

If you’re having pancreatic surgery at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, your discharge orders now include a walking program. Dr. Theresa Yeo, associate director of the pancreas tumor registry says a study compared patients who walked after surgery and those who didn’t.

“The people who participated in the walking program, really at any level, experienced significantly less fatigue than the usual care group, had less pain and we found that using other measures of quality of life they had overall better physical functioning.”

Dr. Yeo says the program is easy to follow. “It does not require people to achieve a target heart rate. You can do it anywhere; we start people in their homes. They can walk outside if the neighborhood is safe for walking, or they can go to a mall.

Each patient is given a copy of a specific program, but Dr. Yeo says any walking routine is beneficial.