Baduanjin mind-body exercise for cancer-related fatigue : protocol for a remotely delivered randomized wait-list controlled feasibility study

Sean Walsh, Kang Wang, Anderson Lam, Shihao Du, Yanbi Hu, Yu-Ting Sun, Elise Tcharkhedian, Evangeline Nikas, Gregory Webb, Eugene Moylan, Stephen Della-Fiorentina, Paul Fahey, Xin Shelley Wang, Ming Chen, Xiaoshu Zhu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Background: People living with a cancer diagnosis often experience cancer-related fatigue (CRF). Between 9% and 45% of people report CRF as moderate to severe, negatively impacting their quality-of-life (QOL). The evidence-base for managing CRF recommends exercise-related therapies over pharmaceutical interventions. One such exercise-like therapy is Baduanjin mind-body exercise (MBE), which has additional benefits. A remotely delivered program may further benefit people with CRF. The primary objective of this pilot will test study feasibility of a remotely delivered Baduanjin MBE exercise program for people living with CRF. Methods: This is a randomized wait-list controlled pilot study and will take place in Sydney, Australia. Subject to informed consent, 40 adults with moderate CRF levels and receiving or previously received adjuvant chemotherapy, will undertake a home-based 8-week Baduanjin MBE program supported by online resources and instructors. The primary feasibility outcomes are recruitment, enrollment, retention, and adherence rates; and safety as measured by tolerance and adverse-event frequency. Clinical outcomes (eg, changes in CRF, QOL, and participant perceptions) are assessed at pre-intervention, week 1, week 4, week 8, and post-intervention. Analyses follows the Intent-to-Treat (all participants as per randomization) and per-protocol (participants adhering to the protocol). Missing data will be imputed from previous data entries and regression models may be tested to predict missing outcomes. Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first study evaluating the feasibility and effects of Baduanjin MBE on CRF using a remote delivery method. These feasibility data will inform a fully powered future trial investigating evidence of effect on CRF and QOL. Trial registration: Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR 12623000177651). Ringgold ID: 651498 Chinese Medicine Centre.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages11
JournalIntegrative Cancer Therapies
Volume23
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2024

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© The Author(s) 2024.

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Creative Commons Non Commercial CC BY-NC: This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).

Keywords

  • remote intervention delivery
  • traditional medicine
  • cancer-related fatigue
  • Baduanjin Qigong
  • randomized clinical trial feasibility protocol

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