Exercise interventions and presentations of depression and anxiety in male genitourinary cancer survivors: A scoping review

Depression and anxiety are common among cancer survivors, including patients with male-specific genitourinary cancers, which may be improved through exercise. We conducted a scoping review of effects of exercise on depression or anxiety among prostate, testicular, or penile cancer survivors in intervention trials. We included exercise intervention studies that examined quantitative effects on depression and anxiety in patients with penile, testicular, and prostate cancer, and searched Embase and PubMed from database inception through June 2, 2025. Two reviewers independently screened titles and abstracts, full-texts, and systematically extracted data from studies. Of 2,314 unique results, 25 studies (24 in prostate, 1 in testicular, and 0 in penile cancers) were included. Of these, 23 studies assessed depression, 17 assessed anxiety, and 4 assessed a composite endpoint. Exercise interventions were aerobic-, stretching-, or strength-based, and about half were multi-modal combining multiple exercise types. Many interventions were short, with 19 studies having a duration of 12 weeks or less. Among testicular cancer patients, high-intensity interval training did not improve depression and anxiety compared to usual care. Several studies of multi-modal interventions in prostate cancer found improvements in depression and anxiety, though not all were statistically significant. Exercise was associated with modest improvements in depression and anxiety among male genitourinary cancer patients, though few outcomes were statistically significant. Further work should evaluate multi-modal interventions, including those combining psychological aspects, in these patients. No studies among penile cancer patients were identified, highlighting an area for future study.