Home-based Respiratory Muscle Training for Minimizing Side Effects in Patients Undergoing Treatment for Breast Cancer

Sponsor
Roswell Park Cancer Institute (Other)
Overall Status
Not yet recruiting
CT.gov ID
NCT05787834
Collaborator
(none)
130
1
2
71
1.8

Study Details

Study Description

Brief Summary

This clinical trial evaluates whether home-based respiratory muscle training is useful for minimizing side effects in patients undergoing treatment for breast cancer. Over-activation of the nervous system during breast cancer treatment can result in heart- and lung-related side effects which have the potential to reduce a patient's quality of life. Aerobic exercise can help prevent the development of these side effects. However, engaging in regular aerobic exercise may be difficult for breast cancer patients who are actively undergoing treatment. Respiratory muscle training (RMT) involves a series of breathing and other exercises that are performed to improve the function of the respiratory muscles through resistance and endurance training. Home-based RMT may represent a more feasible approach for reducing side effects in patients undergoing treatment for breast cancer.

Condition or Disease Intervention/Treatment Phase
  • Other: Best Practice
  • Other: Medical Device Usage and Evaluation
  • Procedure: Respiratory Muscle Training
  • Other: Survey Administration
N/A

Detailed Description

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE:
  1. To assess the feasibility of delivering a 12-week RMT program during adjuvant and neoadjuvant chemotherapy used to treat breast cancer.
SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:
  1. To determine how cardiac autonomic regulation, cardiorespiratory fitness, exercise performance, and quality-of-life (QoL) are affected by RMT during breast cancer treatment.

  2. To assess how RMT affects patient reported symptoms linked to sympathetic overactivation such as stress, fatigue, dyspnea, when performed during chemotherapy.

EXPLORATORY OBJECTIVE:
  1. To determine if RMT reduces circulating biomarkers of autonomic dysfunction, inflammation, and cardiac injury in breast cancer patients undergoing treatment.

OUTLINE: Patients are randomized to 1 of 2 groups.

GROUP I: Patients receive usual care for 12 weeks on study. After 12 weeks, patients may crossover to receive RMT using a respiratory muscle training device for 6 weeks.

GROUP II: Patients undergo RMT using a respiratory muscle training device for 12 weeks on study.

Study Design

Study Type:
Interventional
Anticipated Enrollment :
130 participants
Allocation:
Randomized
Intervention Model:
Parallel Assignment
Masking:
None (Open Label)
Primary Purpose:
Supportive Care
Official Title:
Respiratory Muscle Training During Breast Cancer Treatment: Effects on the Autonomic Nervous System and Cardiotoxicity
Anticipated Study Start Date :
Apr 1, 2023
Anticipated Primary Completion Date :
Feb 28, 2028
Anticipated Study Completion Date :
Feb 28, 2029

Arms and Interventions

Arm Intervention/Treatment
Active Comparator: Group I (usual care)

Patients receive usual care for 12 weeks on study. After 12 weeks, patients may crossover to receive RMT using a respiratory muscle training device for 6 weeks.

Other: Best Practice
Receive usual care
Other Names:
  • standard of care
  • standard therapy
  • Other: Medical Device Usage and Evaluation
    Wear accelerometer

    Other: Survey Administration
    Ancillary studies

    Experimental: Group II (RMT)

    Patients undergo RMT using a respiratory muscle training device for 12 weeks on study.

    Other: Medical Device Usage and Evaluation
    Wear accelerometer

    Procedure: Respiratory Muscle Training
    Undergo RMT
    Other Names:
  • RMT
  • Other: Survey Administration
    Ancillary studies

    Outcome Measures

    Primary Outcome Measures

    1. Proportion of patients who participate in the study [Up to 12 weeks]

    2. Proportion of patients who remain on study [Up to 12 weeks]

    3. Proportion of patients who perform >= 3 respiratory muscle training (RMT) sessions/week [Up to 12 weeks]

      Overall compliance rates (compliance at all time points) will be estimated using 90% confidence intervals. Additionally, compliance status will be modeled as a function of time (e.g., week), and pre-specified exogenous factors (e.g., baseline age, performance status, self-reported history of exercise, breast cancer (BC) treatment received, treatment side-effects) using a generalized estimating equation (GEE) logistic regression model (auto-regressive covariance structure). Estimates of compliance rates will be obtained by time-point and tests about the appropriate contrasts of model estimates will be used to determine if there is a time trend.

    4. Proportion of patients who perform > 70% of their RMT sessions [Up to 12 weeks]

      Adherence rates (completion of >= 70% of sessions) will be estimated using 90% confidence intervals. Additionally, compliance status will be modeled as a function of time (e.g., week), and pre-specified exogenous factors (e.g., baseline age, performance status, self-reported history of exercise, BC treatment received, treatment side-effects) using a GEE logistic regression model (auto-regressive covariance structure). Estimates of compliance rates will be obtained by time-point and tests about the appropriate contrasts of model estimates will be used to determine if there is a time trend.

    Secondary Outcome Measures

    1. Change in Functional Capacity [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Six minute walking test is a functional test of sub-maximum cardiorespiratory capacity.

    2. Change in Lower body strength [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      The Short Physical Performance Battery - PPB is comprised of 3 tasks: a hierarchial standing balance test (side by side, semi-tandem and tandem), 4-m habitual gait speed, and 5 sit to stand from a chair. Each task is scored (based on time) from 0-4 Points (p) and then summarized into a total score of 0-12 p, where 12 p represents the highest performance.

    3. Assess Dyspnea [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Dyspnea will be measured by the Dyspnea-12 questionnaire which contains 12 items on a scale of 0(none), mild (1) and Severe (3) and evaluates the physical and affective dimensions of dyspnea. Higher scores represent greater severity.

    4. Assess Fatigue [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Fatigue will be measured using the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI). Each item is scored 1 (no fatigue) to 10 (as bad as you can imagine) to assess the severity of fatigue and its impact on daily functioning. A global fatigue score is obtained by averaging all the items (1-3: mild, 4-7: moderate, 8-10: severe)

    5. Change in Quality of life [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Quality of life collected by the EORTC Core Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC-QLQ-30) - a 30 question questionnaire with lower higher scores indicating a positive situation.

    6. Sleep quality [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Will be measured by the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index a self reported inventory to measure sleep quality. Questions are answered on 0-3 scale with higher scores indicating greater sleep pathology.

    7. Anxiety [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      The Beck Anxiety Score is a measurement on a scale from 0 to 63 obtained by using the Beck Anxiety Inventory tool to assess symptoms of anxiety. A higher score correlates to increased anxiety whereas a lower score expresses a lower amount of anxiety.

    8. Self-reported measures of stress [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Stress will be measured by the Perceived Stress Scale. The scale measures the degree to which one perceives situations in one's life as stressful on a Likert Scale of 0 to 4 with 0 indicating never, and 4 indicating very often. Higher scores indicate higher levels of perceived stress

    9. Self-reported measures of depression [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Will be measured by the Centers for Epidemiology Studies Depression Scale used as a screen to identify clinically significant depression; a cutoff score of greater than 16 has been shown to correlate with clinically significant depression. In addition, a score between 8 and 15 has been used to define subsyndromal depression. The possible range of scores is zero to 60, with the higher scores indicating more symptoms, weighted by frequency of occurrence during the past week.

    10. Measures of fitness [At baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks]

      Will be measured with a submaximal exercise test. A 6 minute cycling exercise test.

    Eligibility Criteria

    Criteria

    Ages Eligible for Study:
    18 Years and Older
    Sexes Eligible for Study:
    All
    Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
    No
    Inclusion Criteria:
    • Documented breast cancer and scheduled to receive adjuvant or neoadjuvant chemotherapy

    • Age >= 18 years old

    • Cognitively capable of following direction and performing the intervention

    • Able to speak, read and comprehend English language

    • Understand the investigational nature of this study and sign an Independent Ethics Committee/Institutional Review Board approved written informed consent form prior to receiving any study related procedure

    Exclusion Criteria:
    • Have uncontrolled intercurrent illness including, but not limited to, ongoing or active infection, symptomatic congestive heart failure, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac arrhythmia, heart failure or psychiatric illness/social situations that would limit compliance with study requirements

    • Prior radiation to the left chest wall

    • Patients with medical frailty (clinical discretion)

    • Are pregnant or nursing

    • Unwilling or unable to follow protocol requirements

    • Any condition which in the Investigator's opinion deems the participant an unsuitable candidate to receive study intervention

    Contacts and Locations

    Locations

    Site City State Country Postal Code
    1 Roswell Park Cancer Institute Buffalo New York United States 14263

    Sponsors and Collaborators

    • Roswell Park Cancer Institute

    Investigators

    • Principal Investigator: Tracey L O'Connor, Roswell Park Cancer Institute

    Study Documents (Full-Text)

    None provided.

    More Information

    Publications

    None provided.
    Responsible Party:
    Roswell Park Cancer Institute
    ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
    NCT05787834
    Other Study ID Numbers:
    • I-3364822
    • NCI-2023-01256
    • I-3364822
    First Posted:
    Mar 28, 2023
    Last Update Posted:
    Mar 31, 2023
    Last Verified:
    Mar 1, 2023
    Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product:
    No
    Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product:
    No
    Product Manufactured in and Exported from the U.S.:
    No
    Additional relevant MeSH terms:

    Study Results

    No Results Posted as of Mar 31, 2023