Background
Despite an overwhelming body of evidence showing the benefits of physical activity (PA) and exercise for cancer survivors, few survivors meet the exercise oncology guidelines. Moreover, initiating, let alone maintaining exercise programs with cancer survivors continues to have limited success. The aim of this trial is to evaluate the influence of peer support on moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) and various markers of health 12 months following a brief supervised exercise intervention in cancer survivors.
Methods
Men and women previously diagnosed with histologically-confirmed breast, colorectal or prostate cancer (
n
= 226), who are >1-month post-treatment, will be invited to participate in this trial. Once enrolled, participants will complete 4 weeks (12 sessions) of supervised high intensity interval training (HIIT). On completion of the supervised phase, both groups will be provided with written recommendations and verbally encouraged to achieve three HIIT sessions per week, or equivalent exercise that meets the exercise oncology guidelines. Participants will be randomly assigned to receive 12 months of peer support, or no peer support (control). Primary and secondary outcomes will be assessed at baseline, after the 4-week supervised HIIT phase and at 3-, 6- and 12-months. Primary outcomes will include accelerometry-derived MVPA and prescribed HIIT session adherence; whilst secondary outcomes will include cardiorespiratory fitness (
), body composition, quality of life and select cytokines, myokines and inflammatory markers. Random effects mixed modelling will be used to compare mean changes in outcomes between groups at each time point. A group x time interaction will be used to formally test for differences between groups (alpha =0.05); utilising intention-to-treat analyses.
Discussion
If successful, peer support may be proposed, adopted and implemented as a strategy to encourage cancer survivors to maintain exercise beyond the duration of a short-term, supervised intervention. A peer support-exercise model has the long-term potential to reduce comorbidities, improve physical and mental wellbeing, and significantly reduce the burden of disease in cancer survivors.
Ethics
Human Research Ethics Committee of Bellberry Ltd. (#2015–12-840).
Trial registration
Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry
12618001855213
. Retrospectively registered 14 November 2018.
Trial registration includes all components of the WHO Trial Registration Data Set, as recommended by the ICMJE.
Background: Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in prostate cancer has been shown to deteriorate body composition (reduced lean mass and increased body and fat mass) and increase the risk of cardiovascular morbidity. The Mediterranean style dietary pattern (MED-diet) and high intensity interval training (HIIT) may synergistically alleviate these side effects and improve quality of life in men treated with ADT. Methods: Twenty-three men (65.9 ± 7.8 years; body mass index: 29.6 ± 2.7 kg/m2; ADT duration: 33.8 ± 35.6 months) receiving ADT for ≥3 months were randomly assigned (1:1) to 20 weeks of usual care or the MED-diet (10 nutrition consults) with HIIT (4 × 4 min 85–95% heart rate peak, 3× week, starting at 12 weeks). Results: The MED-diet with HIIT significantly improved cardiorespiratory fitness (+4.9 mL·kg−1·min, p < 0.001), and body mass (−3.3 kg, p < 0.001) compared to the usual care group at 20 weeks. Clinically meaningful (≥3 points) improvements were seen in quality of life and cancer-related fatigue after 20 weeks. Conclusions: The MED-diet with HIIT increased cardiorespiratory fitness and reduced body weight in men with prostate cancer treated with ADT. Larger trials determining whether the MED-diet with HIIT translates to cardiovascular benefits are warranted.
Although BPAQ-derived estimates of physical activity are related to bone status in healthy middle-aged and older men, the adverse effect of AST on bone appears to obscure this relationship in men with prostate cancer.
To examine the site-specific osteogenic effect of upper limb impact-loading activity we compared the forearm and arm bone mineral density (BMD) of male boxers to that of active controls. A crosssectional study was performed with 30 amateur male boxers (aged 18-44 years) and 32 age-matched, non-boxing, active controls. Participants had their regional and whole body BMD and bone mineral content (BMC) assessed by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. Hand grip strength, testosterone,
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