Abstract B21: Cancer-related quality of life following physical activity interventions for cancer survivors

We carried out a nonrandomized trial to determine how participation in physical activity interventions (dragon boat paddling team versus a group walking program) impacted on physical and psychological outcomes. We report preliminary findings comparing the pre-post intervention differences on cancer-related quality-of-life (QoL).

83/92 (90%) of participants who enrolled in the study completed an eight-week paddling (n=46) or walking (n=37) intervention. The 27-item FACT-G Scale was administered both pre- and post-intervention. We examined pre-post test differences in mean scores for the total FACT-G scale and four subscales.

In the total study population, participation in a physical activity intervention was associated with significant post-intervention improvements in overall FACT-G QoL scores (post-test mean 84.5 vs. pretest mean 82.5; p=0.03). This included significant gains on the physical (p=0.02) and functional (p=0.01) QoL FACT-G subscales. These overall findings were consistent within both the paddling and walking interventions; no significant between-group differences were observed. However, the increase in the functional subscale mean score was statistically significant for the paddling (p=0.02) but not the walking (p=0.19) intervention.

Participation in a physical activity program, regardless of the type of program, increased overall cancer-related QoL in cancer survivors. This impact was most notable for QoL related to the physical and functional domains. These preliminary findings indicate that participating in a short-term physical activity program can lead to significant improvements in cancer-related QoL.

Supported by NCI R03CA128482.

Citation Information: Cancer Prev Res 2008;1(7 Suppl):B21.