Fatigue and insomnia are problems for patients with cancer. Research findings show that aerobic exercise decreases cancer-related fatigue. Because patients with cancer who have skeletal muscle wasting may not obtain maximum benefit from aerobic exercise training, exercise programs may need to include resistance training. Thus far, testing exercise as an intervention for fatigue has focused on patients with breast cancer and excluded patients with bone metastasis. There is a need to test the feasibility and effectiveness of exercise for patients with other types of cancer and with bone involvement. The effect of aerobic and strength resistance training on the sleep of patients with cancer has not been tested. A pilot/feasibility study with a randomized controlled design was conducted to investigate home-based exercise therapy for 24 patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy and autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation as treatment for multiple myeloma. None of the patients injured themselves. Because of the small sample size in the feasibility study, the effect of exercise on lean body weight was the only end point that obtained statistical significance. However, the results suggest that an individualized exercise program for patients receiving aggressive treatment for multiple myeloma is feasible and may be effective for decreasing fatigue and mood disturbance, and for improving sleep.
Purpose To examine feasibility and utilization of a mobile asthma action plan (AAP) among adolescents. Methods Adolescents (aged 12–17 years) with persistent asthma had their personalized AAP downloaded to a smartphone application. Teens were prompted by the mobile application to record either daily symptoms or peak flow measurements and to record medications. Once data were entered, the application provided immediate feedback based on the teen’s AAP instructions. Asthma Control Test (ACT®) and child asthma self-efficacy scores were examined pre- and post-intervention. Results Adolescents utilized the mobile AAP a median 4.3 days/week. Participant satisfaction was high with 93% stating that they were better able to control asthma by utilizing the mobile AAP. For participants with uncontrolled asthma at baseline, median (interquartile range) ACT scores improved significantly from 16 (5) to 18 (8) [p = 0.03]. Median asthma attack prevention self-efficacy scores improved from 34 (3.5) to 36 (5.3) [p = 0.04]. Conclusions Results suggest that personalized mobile-based AAPs are a feasible method to communicate AAP instructions to teens.
Physical exercise is becoming an accepted part of therapy for many patients with cancer. Exercise may alleviate patients' fatigue and improve physical performance and psychological outlook. Much of the research is limited to women with breast cancer and excludes patients with bone metastases. This article reports on the authors' work in facilitating exercise adherence for patients with multiple myeloma (MM) and bone lesions while they were enrolled in a feasibility/pilot exercise study as they were receiving treatment for their disease in an outpatient treatment program. The exercise program for these patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplantation consisted of aerobic and strength-building components. The program was home based, and patients performed exercises without direct supervision. On average, the patients completed the six-month exercise prescription 75% of the time. Overall trends showed that all 14 patients in the exercise group improved in several areas of testing, and the test results of all 10 patients in the usual-care group declined. Flexibility and simplicity are essential when designing exercise programs for patients, and encouragement and support also are needed to help patients adhere to prescribed exercise.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.