Activating Cancer Communities Through an Exercise Strategy for Survivors (ACCESS)

Status: Recruiting
Location: See location...
Intervention Type: Behavioral
Study Type: Interventional
Study Phase: Not Applicable
SUMMARY

Cancer continues to have the dubious honor of being the leading cause of premature mortality in Canada. The good news is, advances in early detection and cancer treatments are extending the lives of those diagnosed with the disease. However, as more people are living longer, the impact of the therapies used to treat the disease are becoming increasingly apparent. Ranging from the physiological to psychological, cancer survivors are often confronted with substantial, disabling, and life-threatening consequences. The benefits of physical activity (all movement) and exercise more specifically have long been established as a means of prevention and treatment of chronic disease. Several recent reviews and meta-analyses have demonstrated that exercise is a safe and effective means of preventing and improving a multitude of physical and psychological treatment and disease-related sequelae across the cancer trajectory. For example, we know that cancer survivors who exercise not only have a reduced risk of disease recurrence and cancer mortality, but also have reduced acute/late effects of their cancer and/or its treatment such as anxiety, depression, and cancer-related pain. Regrettably, despite our substantial knowledge base, the majority of cancer survivors are not sufficiently active to realize these benefits over the long-term. Moreover, even with the development of evidence-based guidelines, exercise has not yet been widely implemented as a standard of care in the oncology setting largely due to a lack of resources, exercise expertise, and awareness of benefits. Continuing to provide cancer care with little guidance and understanding of the benefits of exercise places cancer survivors at an increased risk for recurrence, late effects, and/or onset of additional co-morbidities, and premature mortality. Therefore, it is important to consider best practices that will optimize and improve quality of survival. Building on the ongoing work of our Alberta-based colleagues and the Alberta Cancer Exercise (ACE) Program (an evidence-based clinic-to-community cancer exercise model), Activating Cancer Communities through an Exercise Strategy for Survivors (ACCESS) is designed to bridge the gap between research and practice and in doing so, lessen the impact of a cancer diagnosis and its treatment(s) on the physical and psychological well-being of cancer survivors.

Eligibility
Participation Requirements
Sex: All
Minimum Age: 18
Healthy Volunteers: f
View:

• Have a diagnosis of cancer;

• Be 18+ years;

• Be pre-treatment, receiving active treatment, or have received cancer treatment within the past 5 years or have a late presenting/ongoing side-effects related to the cancer diagnosis;

• Be able to participate in mild levels of physical activity (at a minimum);

• Be willing to attend a 12-week exercise program in Halifax;

• Be able to provide informed written consent in English.

Locations
Other Locations
Canada
QEII Health Sciences Centre (Dickson Bldg)
RECRUITING
Halifax
Contact Information
Primary
Scott A Grandy, PhD
grandy@dal.ca
902-494-4303
Backup
Melanie R Keats, PhD
melanie.keats@dal.ca
9024947173
Time Frame
Start Date: 2018-09-01
Estimated Completion Date: 2025-12-31
Participants
Target number of participants: 100
Treatments
Experimental: ACCESS
Individuals that consent to the study will be assigned to a 12-week exercise program (ACCESS)
Related Therapeutic Areas
Sponsors
Leads: Nova Scotia Health Authority

This content was sourced from clinicaltrials.gov

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