Health behaviours of Indigenous and non-Indigenous cancer survivors living in regional and remote geographic areas of Australia: a short report

Abstract

Background: Health behaviors are becoming increasingly recognized as important for cancer survivors in optimizing health after diagnosis. The current study aims to describe adherence to health behaviour guidelines in a sample of Indigenous and non-Indigenous cancer patients in Australia's Northern Territory. Methods: A structured survey collecting self-reported sociodemographic and health behaviour data was administered to a sample of cancer patients within 1 year of their cancer diagnosis at a cancer care center in Darwin, Northern Territory. Clinical data were collected via medical chart review. Results: In 63 participants (median age 58 years; 32% Indigenous), most met guidelines for fruit (73%), red meat (76%), and alcohol (75%) intake, whereas adherence to vegetable (10%), processed meat (33%), and physical activity (25%) guidelines was low. Almost one-third (32%) reported being current smokers. Indigenous patients more frequently met guidelines than non-Indigenous patients for fruit intake and physical activity, and less for vegetable, red and processed meat, alcohol intake and smoking. Although there were some notable changes post-cancer diagnosis, about half of the participants reported no change in most behaviors. Conclusions: Adherence to some recommended health behaviors was poor in this sample, regardless of Indigenous status, reflecting previous cancer survivorship and general national reports. For some this may be due to changes resulting from their cancer and treatment, whereas for others this may reflect pre-diagnosis low adherence. Further investigation is needed to better understand health behaviour decision-making for cancer patients and survivors in Northern Territory, to inform public health messaging and interventions for this population.

Adherence to dietary guidelines and associated factors among rural Australian cancer survivors: a cross-sectional study

“…In the present study, relevant individual food types within the following six food groups were assessed due to their importance to cancer [ 19 ] and/or their inclusion in previous studies conducted among cancer survivors [ 3 – 5 , 11 , 12 ]: fruits, vegetables, cereals/breads/grains, whole red meats, processed red meats, and alcohol. For each individual food type (e.g., salad, vegetables (except potatoes) and beans/pulses for vegetables) in the I.CAN FFQ, adherence to dietary guidelines was determined using recommendations published in the Australian Dietary Guidelines [ 20 ] or the Australian Guidelines to Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol [ 21 ].…”

“…Few studies, however, have reported on adherence to dietary guidelines and/or associated factors among rural cancer survivors. In Australia, for example, two studies are known to have examined rural cancer survivors’ adherence to dietary guidelines [ 11 , 12 ]. In an Australian cross-sectional study conducted among 63 cancer survivors in the Northern Territory (NT), the percentages of participants meeting dietary guidelines were 76% for whole red meat, 75% for alcohol, 73% for fruits, 33% for processed meats, and 10% for vegetables [ 11 ].…”

“…In an Australian cross-sectional study conducted among 63 cancer survivors in the Northern Territory (NT), the percentages of participants meeting dietary guidelines were 76% for whole red meat, 75% for alcohol, 73% for fruits, 33% for processed meats, and 10% for vegetables [ 11 ]. This NT study reported a higher percentage meeting dietary guidelines for fruits and lower percentages meeting dietary guidelines for meats among 20 Indigenous participants (fruits, 80%; whole red meats, 65%; processed meats, 20%) than 43 non-Indigenous participants (fruits, 70%; whole red meats, 81%; processed meats, 40%), although the statistical significance of associations between participant characteristics and meeting dietary guidelines was not assessed in the study due to its small sample size [ 11 ]. In an analysis of retrospective data from the South Australian Monitoring and Surveillance System, 46% and 15% of 916 rural cancer survivors met dietary guidelines for fruits and vegetables, respectively [ 12 ].…”

Quality of Life in the First Year of Cancer Diagnosis among Aboriginal and Non-Aboriginal People Living in Regional and Remote Areas of Australia

“…The interview also captured self-reported socio-demographic data, including age, gender, Indigenous status, marital status, employment status, educational attainment, main language spoken at home, and residence by postcode and community name [ 17 ]. Medical chart reviews were conducted using a standard data collection form by a member of the cancer care team to gather participant’s clinical information (diagnosis date, cancer staging at diagnosis, cancer type, and treatment regimen (current or planned treatments).…”

Co-designing Healthy Living after Cancer Online: an online nutrition, physical activity, and psychosocial intervention for post-treatment cancer survivors

“…A report from Tollosa et al [9] using data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health showed that 41%, 36%, and 85.1% of female cancer survivors were not engaging in the health recommendations for physical activity, fruit intake, and vegetable intake, respectively. More recently, Elder-Robinson et al [10] investigated health behaviours of Australian cancer survivors in rural and remote areas, demonstrating that up to 27% had reduced their fruit and vegetable intake and 70% had reduced their physical activity since their cancer diagnosis.…”