Overview
This study assesses how personal relationships (such as friendships, family relationships, or romantic partners) influence the physical activity (exercise) and well-being of young adult cancer survivors. Researchers also hope to learn how social relationships change after a cancer diagnosis, and how these changes might impact important health behaviors. The information provided may help researchers learn more about better ways to support young cancer patients in the future through interventions that help maintain good social relationships and health levels of physical activity.
Description
PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:
I. Characterize the trajectories of social health in young adult (YA) cancer patients.
II. Investigate the longitudinal associations between social health and activity behaviors in YA cancer patients.
III. Explore the effects of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics on the relationship between social health, activity behaviors, and quality of life.
- OUTLINE
Patients complete surveys over 40 minutes and wear an actigraph GT3X-BT accelerometer continuously for 7 days at baseline, 3, 6, and 12 months.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria:
- Diagnosed and/or treated with cancer between ages 18-39 at USC hospitals.
- Cancer types prototypical for adolescents and young adults (AYAs) and cancer stages I-III; select patients with stage IV disease may be eligible, with approval by the principal investigator (PI) and in consultation with the treating clinician.
- Must be within three months of a de novo cancer diagnosis at recruitment and on/indicated for curative therapy (any modality). Patients may continue on adjuvant therapy throughout duration of the study.
- Patients must have anticipated survival of \>1-year at time of diagnosis.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Diagnosis of blood malignancies such as leukemias (these cancers have divergent treatment patterns of longer duration than other cancers and are more commonly pediatric cancers). Some early stage lymphomas with favorable prognoses may be eligible, with approval by the PI and in consultation with the treating clinician.
- Primary language other than English or Spanish.
- Inability to complete a survey and/or wear an accelerometer either per the patient or in consultation with the clinician's judgment.