While evidence on prehabilitation is mounting, upper gastrointestinal surgery still remains under-investigated. This trial aims to explore the effect of prehabilitation over the whole perioperative trajectory, including neo-adjuvant treatment (NAT).~Multimodal prehabilitation includes exercise, nutrition therapy, and mental distress coping strategies. In the context of a multimodal approach, the two groups follow different exercise prescriptions: high-intensity interval supervised training prescribed accordingly cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET)-derived variables, versus a home-based program. For both groups, multimodal prehabilitation is prescribed over the whole preoperative period, including during NAT.
Prehabilitation utilizes the preoperative period to prevent or attenuate the treatment-related functional decline and its consequences. This project aims at testing feasibility and effectiveness of multimodal prehabilitation in esophageal cancer care.