Effects of Self-administered Acupressure Versus Aerobic Exercise for Treating Cancer-related Fatigue in Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy: A Randomized Controlled Equivalence Trial
The primary aim of the study is to determine whether self-administered acupressure has effects equivalent to aerobic exercise on CRF in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. Secondary outcomes include sleep disturbance (self-reported and objective), activity levels (self-reported and objective), quality of life (QoL), cognitive impairment, return to work, chemotherapy completion, and adherence to the intervention. This will be a prospective, assessor-blind, parallel group randomized controlled trial (RCT) that will strictly follow the CONSORT guidelines. A total of 138 patients aged 18 or above with a diagnosis of breast cancer scheduled to commence their first cycle of outpatient adjuvant chemotherapy will be recruited and randomized into self-administered acupressure and aerobic exercise groups. The hypothesis of this study is self-administered acupressure and aerobic exercise demonstrate equivalent effects on CRF. The acupressure arm comprises of a one-on-one, 90-min instructional session and a 1-hour follow-up visit by a trained Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner, and self-practice for 12 weeks. The exercise arm consists of a one-on-one, 90-min instructional session and a 1-hour follow-up visit by a trained exercise specialist, and self-practice for 12 weeks. Participants will be instructed to maintain self-practice after the intervention. Intention-to-treat analysis will be performed.
• aged 18 or above
• with a diagnosis of breast cancer
• scheduled to commence their first cycle of outpatient adjuvant chemotherapy
• have an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status of 0 or 1
• screened as no contraindications for exercise based on a pre-exercise safety assessment (including aspects of blood results, cardiorespiratory signs and symptoms, metastasis, and variations in cognitive functions)
• written informed consent