Abstract 1574
Background
At Peninsula Health, an area health service in Victoria, Australia, a cancer rehabilitation program was introduced in 2013. Since its inception, enrolment has been less than expected. The purpose of the current project was twofold: to identify self-reported changes in exercise behaviours pre- and post-cancer diagnosis, and to identify barriers to participating in the cancer rehabilitation program in our patient cohort.
Methods
We conducted a prospective, survey-based, cross-sectional study of patients attending the oncology outpatient clinic at Frankston Hospital between 1st July 2016 and 31st October 2016. The survey was offered to all patients attending for review. Chi-square analyses were performed on the survey data to identify significant differences in exercise behaviours, and qualitative data about barriers to engaging in the CRP are presented.
Results
125 responses were received. The frequency with which people engaged in physical activity changed as a consequence of receiving their diagnosis, χ2 4 = 67.79, p
Conclusions
Patients reported an increased rate of sedentary behaviour after diagnosis compared with their pre-diagnosis levels of activity. Reducing and managing patient expectations regarding fatigue (both cancer-related and treatment-related), as well as patient education regarding the role of exercise in cancer survivorship should be routinely addressed in the oncology clinic.
Clinical trial identification
Legal entity responsible for the study
Peninsula Health
Funding
None
Disclosure
All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.