EXCEL: Exercise for Cancer to Enhance Living Well

University of Calgary

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Breast Cancer; Cancer Caregivers; Colon Cancer; Cancer; Head and Neck Cancer; Prostate Cancer

Treatments: Behavioral: Group Exercise Classes

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT04478851

HREBA.CC-20-0098

Details and patient eligibility

About

Project EXCEL will provide community or online exercise programs to rural and remote and under-served cancer survivors, as well as encourage participants to become life-long exercisers. Exercise is an evidence-based self-management strategy that benefits all cancer survivors. However, most cancer survivors who live in remote or rural places don't have adequate opportunities to be involved in exercise programs that are tailored to their needs.

Full description

As cancer survivorship numbers grow, a focus on positive health in survivorship is essential. Exercise is an evidence-based effective self-management strategy that benefits all cancer survivors (CS). However, the majority of research and the limited development of evidence-based clinical or community programs in exercise and cancer has been conducted almost exclusively in urban academic and clinical settings, with very limited implementation outreach to "hard to reach" CS.

In this proposed cancer exercise hybrid implementation effectiveness research, over 5 years we will use an integrated knowledge translation approach to move the current evidence-base that clearly supports the role of exercise in cancer survivorship, into sustainable and effective community-based or online settings that will optimize the delivery of exercise to rural/remote and underserved CS (RCS). Implementing and evaluating the proposed Exercise Oncology Survivorship (EOS) partnership model will result in a sustainable resource to support the implementation and delivery of exercise oncology programs in rural Canadian communities.

Investigators will work to develop lasting referral pathways between cancer care clinics and local fitness professionals. These fitness professionals will have additional cancer specific training to ensure they can effectively and safely deliver the program. Eligible and consenting participants will be screened for exercise safety, and following fitness testing will be triaged to appropriate exercise programming. If, due to COVID-19 public health restrictions, community based programming cannot occur, the exercise sessions will be delivered online by fitness professionals.

Enrollment: 1,500 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 100 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• have a diagnosis of cancer
• are over the age of 18 years
• are able to participate in mild levels of activity
• are about to have treatment, are currently having treatment, or have had cancer treatment within the last 5 years
• can read/write in English
• can access online programs, if necessary, to participate in the exercise programs.

Exclusion criteria

• unable to read/write in English
• are unable to participate in exercise
• for online programs, do not have internet or computer access

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: N/A

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

---

1,500 participants in 1 patient group

Intervention

Experimental group

Description:

All participants will be involved in group exercise classes, twice a week for 12 weeks.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Group Exercise Classes