Findings of a new study reveal that most breast cancer patients fail to meet national physical activity guidelines after being diagnosed with the disease.

 Previous studies have highlighted that physical activity is important for breast cancer patients to enjoy improved quality of life and prolonged survival. In a new study, researchers from the University of North Carolina found that most breast cancer patients fail to meet national physical activity guidelines after being diagnosed with the disease.

"Medical care providers should discuss the role physical activity plays in improving breast cancer outcomes with their patients, and strategies that may be successful in increasing physical activity among breast cancer patients need to be comprehensively evaluated and implemented," lead author Brionna Hair from the University of North Carolina said in a press statement.

For the study, the researchers examined pre- and post-diagnosis physical activity levels in 1,735 women aged 20 to 74 years, who were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer between 2008 and 2011.

The American Cancer Society recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity per week. This not only has many health benefits but also helps in the prevention and management of chronic disease.

After diagnosis, only 35 percent of breast cancer patients met national physical activity guidelines. Additionally, 59 percent admitted that there was a significant decline in physical activities six months after being diagnosed with cancer. On an average, such patients engaged in only 5 hours of brisk walking per week. When looking at these statistics by race, researchers found that African-American women were 40 percent less likely to meet current physical activity guidelines than white women. However, their post-diagnosis weekly report of physical activity was not very different from that of white women (12 and 14 hours, respectively).

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory researchers found that breast cancer survivors, who meet the daily exercise recommendations, are at a 25 percent lower risk of dying from the disease. The same team of researchers also found that survival rates are higher among patients who run rather than those who walk.  However, the study researchers pointed out that their findings in no way debunk findings of a previous study which said that walking can reduce breast cancer risk by 14 percent.

Breast cancer survivors face two very big hurdles post-treatment - fatigue resulting from chemotherapy and/or the accumulated effects of other treatments, and a phenomenon some women have dubbed as "chemobrain", which is basically mental changes such as memory deficits and the inability to focus.

A recent study by the Ohio State University found that yoga can help breast cancer survivors overcome fatigue. Researchers also noted that it helps reduce distress, anxiety and depression and enhances the quality of life in cancer survivors.

The American Cancer Society revealed that 232,340 new cases of invasive breast cancer were diagnosed in women in 2013. Currently, there are more than 2.8 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.

"There are no specific guidelines in place at the moment to tell us precisely how much physical activity is needed after a breast cancer diagnosis, but Breakthrough Breast Cancer suggests aiming for 3.5 hours per week, after checking with your treatment team to see what is appropriate for you," Caroline Dalton, of Breakthrough Breast Cancer, told BBC News.

Findings of the new study were published online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.