1. A Clinical Trial on the effects of Physical Activity and Nutrition on Southern Asian Post Breast Cancer Patients
Authors: Kirtan Amin and Dr. Bhibha M. Das
Department of Kinesiology, College of Health and Human Performance, East Carolina University
Purpose
The purpose of our study is to examine the relationship between self-report physical activity and measures of physical, mental, and occupational health.
Physical health will be defined as BMI, fatigue, sleep quality, pain interference, and pain intensity.
The southern Asian community, there has been a notable increase in breast cancer in the past fifteen years
Diet will consist of focuses on a high amount of antioxidants, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes and nuts. The everyday fats such as butter the participants use will be replaced with healthy fats. Furthermore, salts will be limited and exchanged with herbs and spices. Theses participants will also be given a light physical activity plan that complements the diet they have been given
Specific Aim #1: To measure the relationship between quality of life and nutrition
Hypothesis: There will be a positive correlation between quality of life and nutrition and will lead to a healthier lifestyle
Specific Aim #2: To measure the relationship between quality of life and physical activity
Hypothesis: There will be a positive relationship between physical activity and quality of life and will be more energetic and lose the weight gained from chemo therapy treatment
Conclusions
It is important to understand the affects nutrition and physical activity have on breast cancer patients especially minorities that are diagnosed with breast cancer
This study will be the first one to measure the physical activity and nutrition of southern Asian female post breast cancer
Future research would entail a physical activity and nutrition intervention for minorities who are diagnosed with breast cancer and want a natural treatment plan after chemo therapy
Public Health Impact
The data collected from this study is drastically important not to just to this specific community but other communities that are underrepresented in the medical research field, could use this data for possible studies for their respective communities
It may be useful information for women having side effects from their cancer treatments and can’t find a natural treatment plan
If we can intervene with a southern Asian female’s nutrition and physical activity, it may help the individual quality of life drastically improve after treatment
Table 1. Questionnaires
Nutrition
Physical activity
Quality of life
Demographic
Do you notice any positive signs from cutting everyday fats
Has there been an increase in motivation
What is your fatigue level from a scale of 1-10
Date of Birth
Is there a change in your weight? If there is how much have you lost
How are you sleeping from a scale of 1-10
Age, Sex, Ethnicity, Race
International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ
PROMIS Short-Form Fatigue
Has their been an increase in energy from day to day
Employment Status
Yes No
Methods
Participants
Southern Asian who were diagnosed with breast cancer
Females
Age: 35-65
1-3 yrs after chemo therapy treatment
N=25
Recruitment
Social Media
Oncologists in the New Jersey Area
Word of Mouth
Procedures
Obtain informed consent
Administer a pre and post questionnaire for before they complete the trial and after they complete the 12 week trial (See Table 1)
References
Strasser B, Steindorf K, Wiskemann J, Ulrich CM. Impact of resistance training in cancer survivors: a meta analysis. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2013;45; Doi: /MSS.0b013e31829a3b63.
Kiechle, M. (11). Feasibility of structured endurance training and mediterranean diet in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers - an interventional randomized controlled multicenter trial (LIBRE-1). BMC Cancer, 17(1), 752; 752.
Gulati, S., Misra, A., Tiwari, R., Sharma, M., Pandey, R. M., & Yadav, C. P. (2017). Effect of high-protein meal replacement on weight and cardiometabolic profile in overweight/obese asian indians in north india.British Journal of Nutrition, 117(11), doi: /S
Trinh, L., Mutrie, N., Campbell, A. M., Crawford, J. J., & Courneya, K. S. (2014). Effects of supervised exercise on motivational outcomes in breast cancer survivors at 5-year follow-up doi://doi-org.jproxy.lib.ecu.edu/ /j.ejon
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths:
Online questionnaires
A demographic that is underrepresented in the research study field
Limitations:
Sample size
Subjective measures of physical activity, quality of life and nutrition
Cross-sectional