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Dr Eva Zopf

Senior Lecturer
Centre for Human Performance & Metabolism

Areas of expertise: exercise physiology; exercise as medicine; exercise oncology; cancer; supportive care; randomized controlled trials

HDR Supervisor accreditation status: Full

ORCID ID: 0000-0001-6250-0041

Phone: +613 9230 8242

Email: eva.zopf@acu.edu.au

Location: ACU Melbourne Campus

Dr Eva Zopf is a senior lecturer and exercise physiologist whose research interest focuses on the role of exercise for the management of cancer and its treatment-related side-effects. She graduated with a PhD in the field of Exercise Oncology at the German Sport University in Cologne, Germany and worked at the Exercise Medicine Research Institute at Edith Cowan University in Perth as a postdoctoral research fellow before joining Australian Catholic University in July 2016. Eva specialises in the design and execution of clinical trials that involve best-practice exercise programs tailored for people living with and beyond cancer. She has established strong collaborations with international leaders in the field and is the Australian lead on numerous multinational projects. Eva is committed to the translation of research findings into clinical practice and to improving the supportive care services available for cancer survivors.

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Select publications

• Zopf EM, Müller J, Trevaskis M, Kias A, Hiensch AE, Bland KA, Lorenz MC, Monninkhof E, Schmidt M, Binyam D, Clauss D, Gunasekara N, Crisafio M, de Jongh E, Olivier F, Wengström Y, Steindorf K, Alves AJC, Campbell A, Campbell K, Stuiver MM, May A, Winters-Stone K. (2025). Considerations for delivery of live-remote exercise for people with cancer in research and practice. Journal of the National Cancer Institute Monographs, 2025(71):351-359. doi: 10.1093/jncimonographs/lgaf029. PMID: 40828162.
• Schmidt M, Hiensch AE, Depenbusch J, Monninkhof E, Belloso J, Clauss D, Gunasekara N, Trevaskis M, Rundqvist H, Wiskemann J, Müller J, Sweegers MG, Schneeweis A, Altena R, Kufel-Grabwska J, Bijlsma RM, van Leeuwen-Snoeks L, ten Bokkel-Huinink D, Sonke G, Brandner S, Savas P, Antill Y, White M, Ancizar N, van der Wall E, Aaronson N, Senkus E, Urruticoechea A, Zopf EM, Bloch W, Stuiver M, Wengström Y, May A, Steindorf K. (2025). Impact of Exercise on Sexual Health, Body Image, and Therapy-related Symptoms in Women with Metastatic Breast Cancer: The Randomized Controlled PREFERABLE-EFFECT Trial. International Journal of Cancer, 157(3):490-503. doi: 10.1002/ijc.35429.
• Schouten AEM, Hiensch AE, Frederix GWJ, Monninkhof EM, Schmidt ME, Clauss D, Gunasekara N, Belloso J, Trevaskis M, Rundqvist H, Wiskemann J, Müller J, Sweegers MG, Fremd C, Altena R, Bijlsma RM, Sonke G, Lahuerta A, Mann GB, Francis PA, Richardson G, Malter W, Kufel-Grabowska J, van der Wall E, Aaronson NK, Senkus E, Urruticoechea A, Zopf EM, Bloch W, Stuiver MM, Wengstrom Y, Steindorf K, van der Meulen MP, May AM. (2025), Supervised Exercise for Patients With Metastatic Breast Cancer: A Cost-Utility Analysis Alongside the PREFERABLE-EFFECT Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Clinical Oncology, JCO2401441. doi: 10.1200/JCO-24-01441.
• Hiensch AE, Depenbusch J, Schmidt M, Monninkhof E, Pelaez M, Clauss D, Gunasekara N, Zimmer P, Belloso J, Trevaskis M, Rundqvist H, Wiskemann J, Müller J, Sweegers MG, Fremd C, Altena R, Gorecki M, Bijlsma R, van Leeuwen-Snoeks L, ten Bokkel-Huinink D, Sonke G, Lahuerta A, Mann GB, Francis PA, Richardson G, Malter W, van der Wall E, Aaronson N, Senkus E, Urruticoechea A, Zopf EM, Bloch W, Stuiver M, Wengström Y, Steindorf K, May A. (2024). Supervised, structured and individualized exercise in metastatic breast cancer: a randomized controlled trial. Nature Medicine, 30(10):2957-2966.
• Bland KA, France-Ratcliffe M, Krishnasamy M, Nandi A, Parr EB, Martin P, Cormie P, van Loon LJC, Zopf EM. (2024). "It gave me a sense of achievement and a sense of purpose"-a qualitative study of patient experiences of a virtually supervised exercise program for adults with advanced cancer and cachexia. Supportive Care in Cancer, 32(5):325.
• Czosnek L, Rankin NM, Cormie P, Murnane A, Turner J, Richards J, Rosenbaum S, Zopf EM. (2023). "Now is the time for institutions to be investing in growing exercise programs as part of standard of care": a multiple case study examining the implementation of exercise oncology interventions. Supportive Care in Cancer, 26;31(7):422.
• Bland KA, Krishnasamy M, Parr EB, Mulder S, Martin P, van Loon LJC, Cormie P, Michael N, Zopf EM. (2022). "I want to get myself as fit as I can and not die just yet" - Perceptions of exercise in people with advanced cancer and cachexia: a qualitative study. BMC Palliative Care, 21(1):75. doi: 10.1186/s12904-022-00948-x.
• Zopf EM, Schulz H, Poeschko J, Aschenbroich K, Wilhelm T, Eypasch E, Kleimann E, Severin K, Benz J, Liu E, Bloch W, Baumann FT. (2022). Effects of supervised aerobic exercise on cardiorespiratory fitness and patient-reported health outcomes in colorectal cancer patients undergoing adjuvant chemotherapy-a pilot study. Supportive Care in Cancer, 30(3):1945-1955. doi: 10.1007/s00520-021-06608-9
• Baumann FT, Reimer N, Gockeln T, Reike A, Hallek M, Ricci C, Zopf EM, Schmid D, Taaffe DR, Newton RU, Galvão DA, Leitzmann MF. (2021). Supervised versus unsupervised pelvic floor muscle exercise on urinary incontinence in prostate cancer patients after radical prostatectomy - a systematic review and meta- analysis. Disability and Rehabilitation, 22:1-12. doi: 10.1080/09638288.2021.1937717. Online ahead of print.
• Bland KA, Harrison M, Zopf EM, Sousa MS, Currow DC, Ely M, Agar M, Butcher BE, Vaughan V, Dowd A, Martin P. (2021). Quality of life and symptom burden improve in patients attending a multidisciplinary clinical service for cancer cachexia: a retrospective observational review. Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, S0885-3924(21)00222-0.
• Bigaran A, Zopf E, Gardner J, La Gerche A, Murphy DG, Howden EJ, Baker MK, Cormie P. (2020). The effect of exercise training on cardiometabolic health in men with prostate cancer receiving androgen deprivation therapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases, 24(1):35-48.
• Bland KA, Zopf EM, Harrison M, Ely M, Cormie P, Liu E, Dowd A & Martin P. (2020). Prognostic markers of overall survival in cancer patients attending a cachexia support service: an evaluation of clinically assessed physical function, malnutrition and inflammatory status. Nutrition and Cancer: An International Journal, doi: 10.1080/01635581.2020.1800765.
• Cormie P, Zopf EM, Zhang X, Schmitz KH. (2017). Exercise and Cancer: Systematic Review of the Impact of Exercise on Cancer Mortality, Recurrence and Treatment Related Side Effects. Epidemiologic Reviews, 39(1), 71-92.
• Zopf  EM, Newton RU, Taaffe DR, Spry N, Cormie P, Joseph D, Chambers SK, Baumann FT, Bloch W, Galvao DA. (2016). Associations between aerobic exercise levels and physical and mental health outcomes in men with bone metastatic prostate cancer: a cross-sectional investigation. European Journal of Cancer Care, doi: 10.1111/ecc.12575.
• Zopf EM, Bloch W, Machtens S, Zumbé J, Rübben H, Marschner S, Kleinhorst C, Schulte-Frei B, Herich L, Predel H-G, Braun M, Baumann FT. (2015). Effects of a 15-month supervised exercise program on physical and psychological outcomes in prostate cancer patients following prostatectomy- Results of the ProRehab Study. Integrative Cancer Therapies, 14(5), 409-18.
• Baumann F, Zopf EM, Bloch W. (2012). Clinical exercise interventions in prostate cancer patients - a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Supportive Care in Cancer, 20 (2), 212-233.
• Baumann FT, Zopf EM, Nykamp E, Kraut L, Schüle K, Elter T, Fauser AA, Bloch W. (2011).  Physical activity for patients undergoing an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: benefits of a moderate exercise intervention. European Journal of Haematology, 87, 148-156.

Current Projects

• PREFERABLE-II – LION Study: Personalized Exercise-Oncology for improvement of supportive care: a super umbrella trial to demonstrate the (cost)effectiveness of live-remote exercise in cancer survivors.
  Project Partners: Australian Catholic University, Cabrini Health, University Medical Center Utrecht, Netherlands (and 10 other European Partners)
  Funding Source: European Commission Research & Innovation Horizon 2020 (€5,999,800) & National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) European Union Collaborative Research Grant ($457,547 AUD); 2022-2027
• Neo-ACT: Physical exercise during neoadjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer as a means to increase pathological complete response rates
  Project Partners: Australian Catholic University, Monash University, Cabrini Health, Monash Health, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Karolinska Institute (and other European Partners)
  Funding Source: Cabrini Foundation Grant ($69,164); 2025- June 2027
• EXHIBIT: The effects of exercise in patients with melanoma undergoing immune checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy
  Project Partners: Australian Catholic University, Cabrini Health, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre,  Alfred Health, Karolinska Institute
  Funding Source: Cabrini Foundation Grant ($49,960 AUD); 2024-2026
• PREFERABLE – Project on Exercise for Fatigue Eradication in Advanced Breast Cancer to Improve Quality of Life
  Project Partners: Australian Catholic University, Cabrini Health, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Netherlands (and 10 other European Partners)
  Funding Source: European Commission Research & Innovation Horizon 2020 SC1-BHC-2018-2020 Grant (3,983,347€) & National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) European Union Collaborative Research Grant ($415,826 AUD); 2019-2024

Accolades and awards

• 2015, German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Conference Travel Award
• 2014, German Sport University (Gender Equality Commission) Travel Award

Appointments

Affiliations

• Clinical Oncology Society of Australia
• Breast Cancer Trials
• German Cancer Society

Journal reviewer (selection)

• JNCI Monographs
• Cancer Medicine
• Integrative Cancer Therapies
• Breast Care
• European Journal of Cancer Care
• Psycho-Oncology
• Journal of Clinical Medicine
• BMC Cancer
• Frontiers in Oncology