Speaker
Description
Category: Survivorship or Remote/Digital Integration
Background:
Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is one of the most prevalent and persistent symptoms among cancer survivors, significantly impacting quality of life and functional participation. Exercise is an evidence-based intervention for CRF; however, many survivors remain exercise-naïve and require structured support when initiating exercise in their routine or transitioning from supervised rehabilitation to independent exercise. We evaluated the feasibility of integrating a personalized exercise program with remote monitoring to support exercise adherence in patients with CRF.
Methods:
We conducted a 6-month retrospective review of referrals from a cancer rehabilitation physician to exercise physiologists at our institution for patients with fatigue who had a cancer diagnosis. Patients deemed medically appropriate for exercise participation were enrolled in individualized programming and introduced to the Connect MHealth remote monitoring platform. Outcomes included referral completion, attendance at exercise physiology visits, engagement with remote exercise logging, and adverse events.
Results: Twenty-five cancer patients were referred to exercise physiology in this time frame, and 18 (72%) completed at least one exercise physiology visit. Seven of the 18 patients had previously completed physical therapy for cancer-related impairments but had not received fatigue-focused interventions. Six (33%) patients completed multiple exercise physiology visits and actively utilized remote monitoring. Walking was the most commonly reported activity among all participants, with additional participation in cycling, rowing, hiking, and other aerobic and strengthening exercises. Exercise engagement ranged from 2 to 99 logged sessions per participant. No adverse events were reported.
Conclusions: A remotely monitored exercise physiology program for CRF was feasible and safe among appropriately screened cancer survivors. Digital health platforms such as Connected Mhealth can support the transition from rehabilitation to long-term exercise participation by facilitating exercise engagement and clinician oversight. Future work will evaluate patient-reported outcomes, user experience, and fatigue-related clinical outcomes.
Keywords
Cancer-related fatigue; exercise oncology; survivorship; remote monitoring
| Abstract submitters declaration | yes |
|---|---|
| Conflict of Interest & Ethical Approval | yes |
