The Impact of Exercise on Cardiotoxicity in Pediatric Cancer Survivors: A Scoping Review Protocol

Abstract

Introduction: Childhood and adolescent cancer survivors treated with anthracyclines and chest-directed radiation therapy have a much higher risk of developing cardiovascular complications into adulthood. Exercise is one intervention that may mitigate some of these adverse treatment-related effects. Nevertheless, efforts to consolidate this evidence are limited, and a review is required to summarize the impact of current exercise interventions on managing cardiac-related side effects of cancer treatments in pediatric cancer survivors.Objective: This scoping review protocol describes the methods used to explore the current literature characterizing exercise interventions and their reported cardiac-related outcomes for managing cardiotoxicity in childhood and adolescent cancer survivors.Methods: Joanna Briggs Institute guidelines for conducting and reporting scoping reviews will be followed. Studies considered for this review must include an exercise intervention with cardiac surveillance conducted at two or more time points. Intervention participants must have received a cancer diagnosis ≤19 years of age and received anthracyclines or chest-directed radiation therapy.Conclusion/Discussion: This scoping review protocol provides extensive details regarding the methods used, will enhance the transparency of reporting, and will improve the quality of the final scoping review manuscript. Outputs from the completed scoping review manuscript will summarize the breadth of literature reporting on exercise interventions used to manage treatment-related cardiotoxicity in childhood and adolescent cancer survivors.