Association between physical activity patterns and renal cell carcinoma risk: evidence from the UK biobank large-scale prospective cohort

While physical inactivity is an established risk factor for renal cell carcinoma (RCC), prospective evidence comparing the efficacy of distinct physical activity (PA) patterns—specifically the “weekend warrior” (WW) versus regularly distributed activity—remains limited. This study analyzed data from 89,000 participants in the UK Biobank cohort who had no prior diagnosis of RCC. PA data were collected using the Axivity AX3 wrist-worn accelerometer. Participants were categorized into three subgroups: the inactive subgroup, the regularly active subgroup, and the subgroup adhering to the WW pattern. A multivariate Cox proportional hazards model was used to assess the association between these PA patterns and the risk of RCC. Over a median follow-up period of 13.4 years, 286 individuals developed RCC. Using the WHO-recommended benchmark of 150 min of moderate-to-vigorous PA each week, results from the multivariate Cox model indicated that both the WW subgroup (HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.46–0.78; P < 0.001) and the regularly active subgroup (HR = 0.49, 95% CI 0.34–0.70; P < 0.001) had a significantly lower risk of incident RCC relative to the inactive subgroup. Furthermore, no statistically significant disparity was observed between the active WW subgroup and the regularly active subgroup (HR 1.23, 95% CI 0.85–1.81; P = 0.269). In the UK Biobank cohort, both WW and regularly distributed PA patterns were associated with a significantly lower risk of RCC compared to inactivity, with no significant difference between the two active patterns.